These thoughts have brewed for quite a long time, but I have not spoken up, since it has always seemed there are topics that are more important. But I am intrigued by seeing the choices people make while traveling through life: seeing, but not judging. Treating the planet carelessly shows a lack of attentiveness, or to use a popular word, mindfulness. And pollution, especially with plastics, is a world-wide problem.
On the other hand, paradise is not as far away as it may appear. So I decided to write.
In the accompanying photo, in the foreground is my light-blue traveling mug (made by Yeti), and I am quite happy with it.
Why? It is very simple, only three parts, easy to clean, nothing that can break off with repeated removal and replacement (like many sliding top-parts), and uses magnets with elegant design that works perfectly. It minimizes impact on the planet.
It keeps hot liquids hot and cold liquids cold, with a stainless steel inside and rim. There is more to the design, such as alignment of airholes for smooth liquid flow, an elevated rim to avoid liquid overflow, and a sturdy flip tab to remove the top.
In a few words, the Yeti cup is a beautiful example of engineering that meets all needs, and does it with beauty.
This morning, and you can see some of it in the photograph, I came early to the Bread Alone in Woodstock, NY. It was completely full with lively people, and every single person had a drink (coffee or tea) in a paper cup with a plastic top. Not a single travel mug.
Many paper cups cannot even be recycled due to coatings they use; it depends on the brand of cup. The plastic tops cannot in general be recycled at all, and I am not convinced they are safe since they are cheap, throw-away plastic.
Why can’t people use their imaginations to picture the small choices they make that can help the planet be healthier? This includes carrying a reusable travel mug, but also carrying reusable shopping bags when going to the store, and avoiding the use of single-use plastic bottles for drinking water.
Going deeper than blaming people for this carelessness, I will put forth an explanation that may sound foolish, but I believe touches on a profound cause of the carelessness.
Sigmund Freud wrote about the “death instinct”. It is the urge to destroy the structures of civilization and in the individual’s life. The structures and demands of civilization may be felt as restrictive, and ignoring or destroying those structures can have a certain appeal.
Although I do understand that many of Freud’s ideas have been replaced or at least expanded on with more understanding, there is something to the death instinct theory: it is one way to explain the needless wars that destroy so many lives and so many accomplishments in infrastructure, and the ability to live a life of dignity.
Thinking of billions of people tossing away coffee cups, single-use water bottles, and shopping bags, I have to wonder whether there is a reason this is going on.
And I want to say something very clearly: we do NOT need to destroy our planet in order to save it! There are other ways. Caring for the physical world and caring for each other, there are ways to make the planet a paradise that is its real potential, without tearing down everything we have built. Do you agree?
Why not make choices that support that kind of future, even with simple choices such as using a durable beverage mug, tap water (it is safe almost everywhere in the U.S.) vs. bottled water, and bags that can be used for years instead of tossed away? These are things we all can do.
You may say I’m a dreamer, but I am not the only one. You know the rest.
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