Friday, October 11, 2013

Ain’t About A Simple Bag.




It all started when Mr. Z walked in with plastic bags containing groceries for the day. He is a close relative who I have known all my life. I was visiting his family. I tend to take liberties with them and so asked why they continued to bring plastic into their house, in spite of all the conversations we have had before. Their spontaneous response was that they needed plastic bags to discard their garbage!
This is the story of most households in countless places – people bring plastic in and throw plastic out. I asked the couple to think about the world that their ancestors left behind for them and questioned if they can justify leaving behind a planet filled with non-biodegradable plastic trash for future generations. They said that they didn’t have the time to ponder over such questions and instructed me not to waste my time either. It was quite clear that they won’t take a deeper look at the issue. I decided to prod further since I was not fighting for a personal cause. What baffled me was that, this was a couple who mostly lived waste-free just 30 years ago. Indeed, I often draw inspiration from how they lived back then.When I told them this, they said: “We didn’t throw plastic away because there was no plastic to be thrown away in those days.” So, it was not a matter of choice, and hence there was no value attached to their earlier waste-free lifestyle.
I spent the next few minutes talking about the poor people that sift through garbage, the great pacific garbage patch, the companies that make money selling millions of these plastic bags, the time (thousands of years) that plastic would take to decompose, the toxins that get into the air when plastic is burnt etc. I was curtly told that there was no need for me to get so emotional over a simple plastic bag. But it isn’t just one bag. Their own household, I know, has been throwing away 7–10 plastic bags/wrappers every day, adding up to 2500–3700 plastic bags/wrappers per year! When I mentioned this number, I am sure the enormity of it caused them to flinch a little. But still there was no commitment from their side.
I had no idea how to get past this invisible wall they had constructed around them. All I knew was my heart was racing, my frustration was mounting and  my anger was taking control of me. I was unable to connect with them effectively.. When I became mindful of my current emotional state, I realized that I could ask them to do some mindfulness practice too. I asked Mr. Z to try running an experiment on himself just for one day. I said, “Please carry a few cloth bags with you and use only those. Please indicate your preference to the shop-keepers and if possible let them know the reason. Since you know that your choice is helping the earth, you are likely to feel a certain way about your choice and your action. Please observe the feelings and emotions that get evoked within you”.
Maybe this couple will start seeing garbage with a new pair of lens. If not, I will have to devise another way to reach out. I can’t give up, can I?

-- Hema


1 comment:

  1. I am unable to cross this barrier or communicate why we need to reduce our use of plastic. Any progress with mr Z?

    ReplyDelete