My resolution for the year 2015 was to live a simpler life. I may not have failed at it. I donated half of my possessions. Think about life cycle of everything. Understand that good design should take into account welfare of people and the planet. Realize that giving my money to a company who make products with no respect to quality, human living conditions and the environment is something to be ashamed of. A final straw on this journey for this year has been my India trip. It’s easy to forget about the world when living in America and surrounded by all sorts of excess.
It was hard looking into the eyes of this child. He was sitting stark naked outside my relatives home covered in dirt. I bought so many things this year. And was feeling good about donating a few things.
This photograph has my mother standing on a bed of rice grains. I come from a lineage of farmers. We have three crops a year. This year, we had one. CLIMATE CHANGE. Lack of rain. Drought. Mass migration of farmers to the cities looking for work. It’s happening to us for real.
Grandpa’s backyard. We used to have ducks, turkey, chicken and peacocks in our backyard. We now have 2 ducks. The animals are disappearing. We no longer see bird nests in the trees.
My badass mother. And my favourite model. She patiently showed me around the fields, taught me about the health of the farms, talked about the life cycle of products, went over some DIY home remedies, etc during this trip. She patiently listed to my rants about how we were destroying the planet. She understood when I told her I wanted to adopt a child. Nobody else does.
Biodiversity needs to be celebrated. Animals are awesome ! I no longer see one unless it’s a tamed dog/cat or dead and cooked.
I will always be a farmer’s granddaughter at heart. My heart sings when I am outdoors surrounded by nature.
With age, comes beauty and wisdom. I must not develop the tendency to unlearn this principle in the name of vanity.
My grandparents have a caster oil plant in the backyard. They boil the seeds and extract the oil periodically. Most ailments are cured by ingesting or applying this oil. Pill popping tendencies do not develop in such homes.
Glass bangles can be as beautiful as diamonds. Most women in India have access to them. We women want to feel beautiful. I think it can be done without the extravagance and the excess.
This guy is the groom. Given a choice, he picked the less extravagant options. Dressed down and refused to wear jewellry for the show. Proud of his choices. He constantly asks me “why do you need so many shoes”.
I have a few challenges for myself for 2016. I am going to do so much better than what I did, this year. Learn about sustainability and even try to make a difference. I learnt that air travel is one of the most polluting areas in terms of the emissions. You can eat local all year, become vegetarian, bike everywhere but that one flight to India makes up for all the emissions saved. My last expense for this year is paying for carbon offsets for the travel incurred. And getting my camera repaired.
Great post – yet again. Climate change is a very real threat, but we are not doomed quite yet. Spreading awareness, saving the elephant (sorry but I cannot let that go!) small everyday choices make a difference. I avoid flying as much as possible, ( mostly holiday in Europe by train) though I don’t see how else you could have gone to India. Sometimes it’s the only choice and as you say it’s not about giving things up, it’s about embracing a more sustainable way of living. I can’t wait to read more about your discoveries and suggestions. I mostly try to buy ‘made in Europe’ clothes, fair trade, local and organic food- but there must be more we can do.
I admire how much you care about the elephants. For me, its been the girl child and her education. Girls are still unwanted in my home country.
European public transport is something of an envy for me. Esply the trains. I was looking into carbon offsets. You pay for the clean up of the emissions you created. I know a few hard core environmentalists who do that since they spend most of their days travelling.
A well rounded and moderately lean life is what I want to carve out for myself. Future conversations and blog posts await. 🙂
Thank you Lady Sarah.
I love the way you write. You are a poet, especially when speaking about nature. For some reason it never occurred to me I could grow and make my own caster oil. And your grandmother is too cute. I agree that beauty can be obtained without extravagance or excess… there is nothing more beautiful than balance and moderation, to me.
They made their backyards count. A compost pit, wild chickens, very selective plants and trees, zero focus on landscaping, empty space – made their backyard. I am looking forward to having a backyard someday that I harness.
Olive oil and most oils are cold pressed. And need some fancy equipment. Castor oil looked rather easy. Peel the skin which is prickly. Throw the seeds in the water and boil. Take the top layer of oil off the utensil. Sounds good right ? Grandma used to make her own eye liner with it. Burn an oil wick and collect the soot. Mix with ghee and camphor for some very soothing concoction. Its very easy to remove too. They all used coconut oil as the remover.
And thank you. My academic writing is rather weak and I am pleasantly surprised every time someone appreciates my writing on the blog. Maybe nature talk brings the best of me ? ….
Your Nan is such a genius making her own eye liner. And your Nan is STUNNING!
Your mum remind me of my mum…………
such heartwarming pictures.
And don’t even get me started about how we have destroyed the planet and how we are looking for newer planets to defile!!!!!!!
Apparently it was common place during her time. None of them went to stores to buy beauty products. She grew up in the days when there were no soaps ( 1910s) and they went to the river and used clay as scrub. … She met Ghandi-ji and donated jewelry when he asked the village for help. Different era and values.
About the planet – too sad. I actually want to slap anyone who believes otherwise and think climate change and destruction is exaggerated.
Lovely writing and photographs! It’s terrible how polluting air travel is, especially when flights are not even half full. Though I would be a hypocrite if I reported never flying, and it’s difficult to imagine getting by without doing so when family and loved ones are across the world.
Again, appreciate the recognition. I learnt that air travel and our water cruises are the absolute worst. Makes me think twice before needing that item that goes to multiple continents to be made and assembled.
I quite like the idea of carbon offsets – pay for the clean-up of your shit. If every organization and individual did that, maybe it makes a difference ?
Good reading… I adore a Simple life! ..it took me years to understand the joy and peace that it brings which complexity can never possess let alone render. warm regards