Overwhelmed

Posted by admin on April 7, 2009

“Going green“
It’s what everyone is talking about.
It’s the newest “fad”…now only if more people would realize it’s not a fad but a much needed way of life.

Everyone’s in “green mode” this month because Earth Day is April 22nd so everyone seems to be jumping on the bandwagon. This is good and bad…Good people and companies are acknowledging it but bad if it’s not a permanent life change and is simply a means of greenwashing by businesses.

We have the world at our fingertips, but that doesn’t mean we should trash it, pollute it, overwhelm it with junk and stuff. We need to take care of the earth.

Now, some people feel overwhelmed with all the information and green things they can/should be doing. I mention overwhelm in a recent interview for an article in the Sun Sentinel paper. People…you can make small changes that will add up. One small change is better than no effort at all.

Don’t feel like you have to go from the way you’re living now to 100% green. It’s hard to do, it’s even difficult for some die hard people who’ve been green before green was the thing to be. You will have to obtain information and weigh the pro’s and con’s and decide what’s best for you on your green journey.

Do what’s best and comfortable for you, do it in stages, take time to do it so you and your family aren’t totally overwhelmed which may turn them against ideas of living a greener lifestyle. Make it fun and enjoyable…not stressed and overwhelming.

Some simple tips that you may want to apply:

Reduce: buy less, use less.

Reuse: repair, repurpose, swap, sell, or donate items you no longer need or want.  Buy reusable shopping bags and bottles for filtered water.

Recycle:  paper, plastic, glass, cans, of course.  Include aluminium foil and soup and vegetable cans as well as soda cans.  Do this at work, at home and when traveling. 

Grow some of your food and yes you can do this even if you don’t have a yard! I’m doing it on the 3rd floor balcony of my apartment via containers, earth boxes and stack/grow method.

There are so many things you can do that will make a change. Pick some and go green one step at a time.

No one person has to do it all but if each one of us follow our heart and our own inclinations we will find the small things that we can do to create a sustainable future and a healthy environment. – John Denver