Monday, May 23, 2011

Food for Thought!

Someone sent this to my e-mail, and it literally brought tears to my eyes.
Where does the blame lie..................

How True!!!!!!!!!!


In the line at the store, the cashier told the older woman that she should bring her own grocery bag because plastic bags weren't good for the environment. The woman apologized to him and explained,
"We didn't have the green thing back in my day."
The clerk responded, "That's our problem today. The former generation did
not care enough to save our environment."


He was right, that generation didn't have the green thing in its day.


Back then, they returned their milk bottles, soda bottles and beer bottles to the store. The store sent them back to the plant to be washed and sterilized and refilled, so it could use the same bottles over and over. So they really were recycled.

But they didn't have the green thing back in that customer's day.

In her day, they walked up stairs, because they didn't have an escalator in every store and office building. They walked to the grocery store and didn't climb into a 300-horsepower machine every time they had to go two blocks.

But she was right. They didn't have the green thing in her day.


Back then, they washed the baby's diapers because they didn't have the throw-away kind. They dried clothes on a line, not in an energy gobbling machine burning up 220 volts - wind and solar power really did dry the clothes. Kids got hand-me-down clothes from their brothers or sisters, not always brand-new clothing.


But that old lady is right; they didn't have the green thing back in her
day.


Back then, they had one TV, or radio, in the house - not a TV in every room. And the TV had a small screen the size of a handkerchief, not a screen the size of the state of Montana . In the kitchen, they blended and stirred by hand because they didn't have electric machines to do everything for you.


When they packaged a fragile item to send in the mail, they used a wadded up old newspaper to cushion it, not Styrofoam or plastic bubble wrap.


Back then, they didn't fire up an engine and burn gasoline just to cut the lawn. They used a push mower that ran on human power. They exercised by working so they didn't need to go to a health club to run on treadmills that operate on electricity.


But she's right; they didn't have the green thing back then.


They drank from a fountain when they were thirsty instead of using a cup or a plastic bottle every time they had a drink of water. They refilled their writing pens with ink instead of buying a new pen, and they replaced the razor blades in a razor instead of throwing away the whole razor just because the blade got dull.


But they didn't have the green thing back then.


Back then, people took the streetcar or a bus and kids rode their bikes to school or rode the school bus instead of turning their moms into a 24-hour taxi service. They had one electrical outlet in a room, not an entire bank of sockets to power a dozen appliances. And they didn't need a computerized gadget to receive a signal beamed from satellites 2,000 miles out in space in order to find the nearest pizza joint.


But isn't it sad the current generation laments how wasteful the old folks
were just because they didn't have the green thing back in their day.


*****************************

7 comments:

Shirl said...

Thanks for sharing this with us, Cor...this is very inspiring indeed. I'm going to forward this to my friends too :)

Dorte said...

You made me think, Cor.... thank you for sharing.
hugs Dorte

Di said...

Oh sooo true!I love it lol, our kids take technology so much for granted these days and some adults too. They have no idea.
Hugs Di xx

Kathyk said...

Blimey - we really DID have a green thing back in the day, didn't we? I remember glass bottles with a deposit (don't remember the diaper thing as I was the youngest) and I certainly remember a long walk to and from school too, we didn't get a colour TV till I left school either!!!!!!

Thanks for sharing

Kathyk

Lou Mac said...

I would like to thank you from the bottom of my heart for sharing something like this. It is a huge shame that in todays materialistic society most things, such as cars and electrical equipment, are taken for granted.. as things we 'need', rather than a luxury to want.

More people need to be open minded about stuff that happens on a daily basis, and not take our priviledges for granted that lead to a depeletion of our environments.

Thank you, xo Lou Mac.

Stacie (craft-princess) said...

Very true and I'm glad you shared this with us!

Craftdee said...

I can see why you shared this Corry, it's really thought provoking, thanks. I remember all of those things, my youngest son was born just as "plastic" nappies were coming out and they were so expensive I had a pack (yup, one!) for emergencies! Not only can my sons not envisage life without iphones, the eldest said to me the other day "back when you were young you had to use a video recorder" like it was prehistoric, lol. I didn't have the heart to tell him when we were young we were lucky we had black and white TV! "Video Recorders", What The.....? So, again, thanks for sharing, Dee

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