Rethink Everything

Reader Contribution by Cindy Conner
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Rethink Everything! is the title of the last chapter in my upcoming book Grow a Sustainable Diet: Planning and Growing to Feed Ourselves and the Earth.The official release date is March 1, 2014, but I should have copies for some events I’ll be at in February. You can check my website for those dates and locations.

We all know that we need to take stock in our belongings every now and then—discarding, or rather passing on, what we no longer need and taking a careful look at the stuff we bring into our lives. The same goes for our thoughts. In fact, if we have our thoughts under control, they will take care of the material things. If our thoughts are of wanting to keep up with the neighbors, we had better make good choices when choosing a neighborhood. Ultimately, no one else is responsible for what we do, but us. Of course, we are influenced by others and events. If you don’t like the influence others have over you, it might be time to create some distance and find people whose influence you’d like to have and put yourself at events that have meaning for you. I encourage you to rethink everything you do and look at things with a holistic approach.

Christmas is coming. Even though you might think of the environment at all other times of the year, sometimes that just goes out the window when it comes to Christmas. We raised four children—I know. But, every little bit helps. We went to using cloth bags to wrap Christmas presents when I found some Christmas fabric at a bargain. Not only is it easy—just throw the gift in the bag and tie the string—there is less mess when the gifts are opened and nothing to throw away. The bags and ties are saved from year to year. To wrap large gifts, which sometimes happen when you buy tools, I use old flannel sheets. It helps that I have green and red ones. I seem to need good-sized bags every year, so I made a couple from one of the old sheets. If I should need more bags, I think it would be fun to make some from old white sheets and, using paint and a stencil or stamp, print my own Christmas designs.

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