A few weeks ago I was invited to an event where my son received an award that he won in writing. Third prize in his age category, for a story he wrote. The contest was held in the last month of the school year and the proposed theme was environment and values about responsibility and ecological awareness.
I was more than surprised when he told me that he won that award because, in reality, I didn't know that he participated at all! Teenagers... sometimes he doesn't tell me things like this... nor did he tell me that a few months earlier he participated in another contest, also for writing in the Valencian language, and there he also won a prize. Well, as long as I find out through the good news, it's okay.
So, the story he wrote has been rewarded with a cool notebook, a nice pen, a cloth backpack, a diploma, a book that you see in this post and a voucher valued at 25 euros that he has been able to exchange at a bookstore for whatever he wanted. He ordered two books of his choice, which had already arrived — one about musical intelligence and another about the lives of artists.
His story talked about a little village and the sad reality of how would our society and planet look if we did not take care of it, but the moral of the short story was the importance of daily actions that can make a difference.
This book, which I took from him to read, 😇 made me think about my actions and how could I contribute to a more sustainable planet. Its title already says Tú puedes cambiar el mundo - or in English... You Can Change the World.
There are also quotes like this one that state that a teacher, a student, a pencil and a book can change the world. Can they change it indeed? Or what we can do? Education is very important, it is the first step but our own decisions should make the difference for the good of ourselves and everyone.
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The texts in the book draw our attention to different sectors and industries that pollute our environment, reflect on possible solutions, and give small suggestions on how children and adults could improve their habits and bring a change. I ignored the information that the textile industry is the second most polluting in the world, after the oil company. Well, I don't buy many clothes - that is a good thing. And also I always love giving life to an already used garment that may even have better quality than the new ones they sell now.
The quantity of trash we throw every day is already annoying us for a long time. We see that something is not going in a good direction as just thinking about the time we were children we can't recall so much waste in our households.
But what really scares me the most is the presence of plastic in everything. Virtually everything we buy is wrapped in plastic. No, I'm not talking about the plastic bags you buy at the store when you forget the cloth bag, but rather the packaging of every single fruit or vegetable. Why did it become the norm? 😟
I understand that manufacturers will make everything that people buy, everything. And the more we buy food served like this, the worse it is for us. Maybe it's practical, but we should think about the consequences. Not only because we accumulate a huge amount of garbage, but because small particles of plastic inevitably become part of the food we take into our bodies. Directly or indirectly.
After leafing through the book I borrowed from my son I made a resolution. For a week or two I will try to avoid buying food in plastic packages as much as I can, and buy fresh vegetables and fruits on the market. To see if we can switch...
There is definitely less plastic and the prices are also a bit cheaper than in supermarkets. Not to mention the taste, which is a lot better when you buy fresh veggies from the farmers or at least resellers.
Also, I decided to use my bike instead of the car for the grocery as many times as I could. Going to work by bicycle is not really practical as I have to pedal uphill for half an hour 😅 but I did it last week for one lesson. I had to make sure I would arrive early and not sweat anymore at the time when my student arrived. But I can't do it every day.
About my experiment could I change my habits and completely avoid buying food in plastic packaging... I failed. There are many products that you can't buy in another form. The solution would be to stop buying and eating them. Move to a more rural area, have your own little garden, grow your own food - that could be a thing... But my lifestyle currently is different. I can just try to stay aware of this problem and every time I reach a lettuce wrapped in that horrible plastic just refrain from buying it and go to the market instead.
Do you (and how) try to change your habits to help our planet and us stay healthier?
The most ridiculous thing I saw lately were paper straws and cups... wrapped in plastic bags 🤦♂️.
Haha, it doesn't make sense.
I know right :D
Yeah, that's more than ridiculous. And so are many other things that are served in that way, unfortunately. 😐
First of all congratulations on your son's achievementS (emphasis on S). Not only does he have the musical talent from his mum, he also has the written talent, who from I wonder?
I wish we had markets where I live, they normally have more choices and fresh produces. That's why I'm really trying to grow some of my own food now. Apart from three strawberries, so far my success rate is near to zero, but I hope that will change bin the years to come
Pauline, I hope in the future your garden will flourish!
I hope so too Sara. Hopefully in not too many years
ThankS ;))
He just went on a deserved holiday now, without his parents 😁
Three strawberries are better than none and hopefully, your gardening efforts will bring their fruit for you in future! I have just succulents and one orchid on my balcony - maybe I should consider switching to some cherry tomatoes or else 🤷♀
I'm getting a bit desperate with the lack of harvest, I might get a bit of desperate and plant potatoes. They're dirt cheap in England but easy to grow and I really didn't want to waste effort to grow them 🥴
Mrs. piano buys in Mercadona like me! 🤣 Certainly, we don't need to be told what we can do to improve the environment. We know it because we are part of it. Everything that is natural is always better than the artificial. Just like moving and being active instead of comfortable.
Ps- Double congratulations to your son!
Well, Hivers from Spain could recognize the shelves and products where I took some of the photos hahaha. But it is almost the same in all the other supermarkets, we are served in that way, it slowly became the norm so we already got used to it - but I know we don't want our food to come in that way.
Double thanks, se fue de vacaciones ahora 😋
Congratulations to your son on the well-deserved awards. With regard to pollution in ALL areas, I can tell you that this goes on for a long time. Humans are not going to leave comfort unless the danger is imminent (when the water in the pot is boiling). When I have discussed this with people of different cultural backgrounds, most say: “if we can't fight them, join them”. I in particular live half an hour from the city of Toronto on a 99% organic diet (it's a bit more expensive, but healthy). I walk a lot… The remaining 1% is my addiction to good coffee, heh, heh, heh.
You are very right about that - humans will not leave comfort unless it is almost late. And in general, humans tend to avoid thinking long-term... It is great that you achieved having an organic diet in your area, it indeed is more expensive (not that the non-organic food is cheap at all) but here I also see those organic products come wrapped in plastic packaging 🤦♀
Haha, addiction to good coffee? :D I am having my morning cup of coffee right now ;)
There are so many things to say here that I will write in Spanish hahaha.
First, a son who writes secretly... Do you remember the times I told you that you make very, very good posts? It really runs in the family and you probably even inherited it. They are very pleasant surprises and if he has already won twice it is because he really stands out, his future is promising, you will remember me hahaha.
I think that people who educate must demonstrate with their own actions what is taught, the example is very important, especially for young people who copy everything they see... It seems to me that you have visited a Mercadonas, the best thing I discovered in Spain hahaha, your initiative is beautiful and healthy, so I hope to see you pedaling the bike uphill in a post for Hive in the future 😅
Primero, un hijo que escribe en secreto... Recuerdas las veces que te he dicho que haces post muy, muy buenos? Realmente es de familia y seguro hasta se lo heredaste. Son sorpresas muy gratas y si ya ha ganado dos veces es porque realmente se destaca, su futuro es prometedor, te acordarás de mí jajaja.
Creo que las personas que educan deben demostrar con acciones propias lo que se enseña, el ejemplo es muy importante, sobre todo para los jóvenes que copian todo lo que ven... Me parece que has visitado un Mercadonas, lo mejor que descubrí en España jajaja, tu iniciativa es hermosa y saludable, así que espero a futuro verte pedalear la bicicleta cuesta arriba en un post para Hive 😅
Jajaja, el hijo que escribe a escondidas (podría ser el título de un cuento). O le daba pereza decirme esas cosas 😂 En fin, me sorprendió (sobre todo logrando estas cosas y no ser español ni valenciano jaja)
Pedalear cuesta arriba - esto cuesta mucho jajaja entonces paso de mareo 😂 (no puedo dar las clases así toda sudada, entonces no creo que puedo cambiar el hábito de usar el coche, perdón - carro todos los días). Para ir en tiempo libre, esto sí ;))
I do some shopping in the wilds for free and use my wicker basket! 😊 Congratulations to you and your writer son, all the best to him in the future. He has a good foundation to write something important. 💗
That is cool, I know you are good at doing that 😊 Hopefully, we all can connect more with nature and slow down somehow the harm we do to our environment and that way to ourselves as well.
And all those vegetables and fruits look so fresh! 😊
It's an interesting book, sometimes many things can't be changed, for example in Mercadona everything comes in plastic and sub-plastics haha.
But if I always buy everything from a greengrocer not from Mercadona, I avoid plastics, I take my own bag or trolley. I walk a lot unless it is too far then I use the bus. I try to use as little plastic as possible and if I want to move out of the city centre! But renting is very complicated at the moment.
I want my own vegetable garden, my own fruit trees and all that. I used to have it before and I will work to make it happen.
It's very difficult sometimes to change everything unfortunately.
True. That is why we should try to do small steps at least.
And then we should buy less in Mercadona (and other chains as well) but but but, even aware of the problem and having in mind my own experiment, I failed in my mission. I managed to go a few times to the fresh food market (en tres diferentes municipios porque tienen el mercadillo diferentes días) and buy there the vegetables and fruits but the other things I again bought in our familiar supermarket.
It's true that street markets are an alternative, I have my favourite fruit shop... it's a Chinese market but it's great and I love it! The rest is centralised and the mission becomes .... sometimes impossible, but don't worry, it's not your fault, that's the way it's laid out.
Thank you for this reminder. I have been good in the past. Recently, I have been slacking a bit and last week I found a grocery store with really low prices and so much of the fruit and vegetables are wrapped in plastic. It hurts my soul. Here is a post I did about changing to use less plastic...5 years ago.
New Idea...less waste
Oh and super fun about your son.
Thank you Sara for the link to your post. 🤗 That is excellent, using the little cloth bags for walnuts and buying in bulk instead of prepackaged food. We also try to do similar things as you say, it hurts our souls to see all that food wrapped in plastic. Still, sometimes there is no other option or we run out of time so we again end up buying what is served. Being aware of the situation at least could bring some little changes for the better, I hope 😇
I hope so too. Change is good and sharing and being an example will help too.
Que bonita sorpresa pero mas bonito el hecho de que se trataba. No todos los jóvenes piensan así y lo felicito. La naturaleza necesita de nuestro cuidado. Eliminar los embases plasticos es algo que se ha dicho mucho pero no se hace. Hay que crear conciencia, en nosotros mismos y así enseñamos a los jóvenes. Muy buena tu iniciativa. Gracias por compartir. Bonito sábado y domingo y a 🚴🥰❤️
Pues sí, de esto se habla mucho pero no hay ningún interés en cambiar las cosas por parte de los fabricantes y cadenas de tiendas. De esta manera obtienen enormes beneficios y no les importa el futuro que pagarán nuestros descendientes con su salud. A lo mejor, si cada uno de nosotros intenta hacer un pasito, una cosita aunque pequeña, se puede mejorar un poco. Pero es difícil.
Congratulations to your child on the wonderful rewards your child has received.have a great day.
Thank you 😇
That's superb of him🎉
Writing a book, not just a page or 1k words, but a whole book with chapters. It is not easy.
Okay, you're initiating a change already in your lifestyle. That's good but I think it's going to be hard to maintain...just like someone fighting to come out of addiction. Especially the usage of bicycle 😂.
I wish you luck ma'am 🙌
Of course, it is not easy to write a whole book, but I am afraid you didn't understand well that part of the post?
He leido que hay varios modelos de motor electrico que se pueden adaptar a cualquier bicicleta. Eso podria ayudarte a subir las colinas...Has tocado un tema muy importante. Te cuento que yo reciclo las botellas de Ron que son de vidrio para almacenar el agua de beber...Felicidades a tu hijo por sus exitos!