Walk with me

6/28/10 Trash, trashed

Some of you, Dear Readers, may consider today's downsize something of a cop out, but I actually feel pretty good about it. Any downsize that leads to the world being a cleaner, more beautiful place counts in my book.

Chase was up early today, so Joanna and I were out the door shortly after 7AM, exploring the walking options around out new neighborhood. Fortunately, despite being technically in the city of Denver, we live in a walking wonderland. Our section of the city has literally miles and miles, acres and acres of interconnected parks, green space, playgrounds, and walking/biking/running trails.

Our walk lasted for nearly two hours, and almost none of that was spent on sidewalks or crossing streets. Chase enjoyed it, too, although he'd be the first to admit that he slept through much of it.

To the credit of the area, there was virtually no litter along our path. About half-way through our stroll, however, we did come across a baby's bib in the middle of the walkway. We almost walked right over it, but then my better nature kicked in and I dropped it in the basket under Chase's stroller. This little action created a small, yet powerful shift in Joanna and my thinking, and we spent the rest of the walk collecting every single piece of trash we came across.

In my old neighborhood in New York, this would have burdened us down beyond mobility within thirty feet. Here, however, we ended up with only nine items, including the bib, a child's sock, and a pacifier. It's unclear whether three babies had unfortunate moments or one infant was having a really bad day.

Since we arrived home with those items, they were technically now my possessions. Which took me all of a few minutes to immediately downsize into the trash.

I did save the bib, however, throwing it in the hamper to be washed. We don't need it for Chase, but I figure it could be an acceptable Goodwill donation. That's a downsize for another day.

Editor's Note, 8/15/10: That downsize for another day will happen, but not before we put the bib to use. It turned out that all but one of our bibs are still in storage. Chase has started in on solid foods (prunes are a particular favorite), so we resorted to using the abandoned, soiled bib as a back-up. Yes, that seems wrong, but this mission is in large part about the recycling adage: reduce, REUSE, recycle. Just staying true to the cause.