Be My Conscientious Valentine!
OMG, it’s Valentine’s day soon again! This was a previous gift to my beloved; in our house we do ‘romantic’ everyday so Valentine’s is redundant … well… ok.. so maybe it’s not exactly ‘romance’ that we do, but it works for us, having said that there are never too many days of the year that we can show off our hearts to our beloved. So here are a few odd ideas that might mean you are less of a pollutant and hazard to the future of humankind while you do it.
Make Valentine’s day special without the trash and the crass!
I can see your eyes drifting off to the photo, yes, they are çiğ köfte! (spicy vegetarian bulgur mix normally served as hand shaped balls, eaten wrapped in lettuce leaves.) That’s as romantic as it get in my house on Valentine’s Day!
Things to do!
- Cook a fun meal using healthy and favourite ingredients.
- Including something silly like make or buy a mix and make it into hearts like I did, (try pancakes or cookies instead if you prefer)
- Or bake a heart shaped cake (this cake was two round ones that I baked then cut into the heart shape)
- See my posts here and here for ideas about Zero Waste entertaining such as using fabric napkins.
2. Make a gift or a card or anything that you enjoy doing.
- For instance paint a pebble with a heart (see above)
- Cut the letters L O V E or your initials out of paper, board or wood if you have the tools, and paint and display on wall or as table decoration etc.
- Write a poem and recite or sing! (nothing better than a dreadful, funny poem to get the love thing going!)
3. Shop thoughtfully considering the waste you produce and the ethics of the product.
- Take your own bags.
- Buy from shops that sell in bulk.
- Take containers for everything that you can buy bulk or loose rather than use single use packaging.
4. If you will buy a gift buy something local and handmade to support an artist or crafts-person.
5. Buy a plant, but if you insist on cut flowers ensure they are seasonal, local, ethically grown and free trade cut flowers.
6. Light candles (beeswax if you can find and if you are not a vegan) and put on some music and enjoy some quiet time with your beloved.
7. Turn your phones off for a few hours (that is the most radical romantic thing most of us can manage these days!)
8. Agree that your gift to each other for Valentine’s this year and every year will be some precious time together,
- If it suits your budget you can plan a trip for later in the year, an experience, maybe you’d like to try scuba diving, or a forest trek or a weekend of learning permaculture gardening together.
9. Have a bath or shower together (maybe lights some candles but try just use solid soap.. remember we are trying to quit the plastic bottles….sorry to distract you… yes… candles…. music maybe… don’t electrocute yourself or drop music device/phone in bath!)
10. Go for a long walk together, maybe take a pocket knife and engrave your initials in a park bench, or write them in the sand or grafitti them on a wall…. (DON”T ever engrave in the bark of a tree or paint on them… NEVER! And don’t get arrested!)
Things to NOT do!
1. Don’t buy rubbish!
- By which I mean don’t spend money on pointless gifts, does your beloved really need a heart shaped cushion or a diamond ring (does anyone ever need either of those?!)
2. Don’t buy balloons. Ever!
3. Don’t pick a bunch of wild flowers. Ever! The bees need them more than you do.
4. Don’t buy cut flowers unless you can be sure they are free trade etc. Flower farming uses pesticides and they travel internationally to get to you!
5. If you eat out
- don’t accept a straw in your drinks. Ever!*
6. Don’t eat too much meat: I’m almost vegetarian having learnt what an impact it has upon the world, maybe you can stick to a vegetarian, local seasonal menu too, which will keep you light for later.
7. Don’t buy anything that comes in needless packaging including cupcakes, cosmetics, clothes…. and if you do buy or make a gift, wrap it in something you can reuse like fabric.
8. Don’t buy something that supports a multinational company that is detrimental to your interests. Choose local and sustainable instead.
If you are alone on this most annoying day of the year, then OWN it! Pick something from the above and treat yourself (and a friend) to a bit of heartfelt, conscientious pampering.
Though Valentine’s day reeks of insincerity I urge us all to only ever do what comes from the heart, if you find yourself struggling to feel committed to the feelings behind this day of romance, then well, give it some good thought. However if you’d rather just keep on loving and ignore Valentine’s then go ahead!
If the ideas here inspire you to make changes this Valentine’s, but if your beloved is expecting something of the more ordinary and typical you might want to share this with them so they get on board too (and so they don’t dump you!) (oh, and if they don’t care about sustainability and such, maybe you should dump them!)
Change our habits and keep on Loving!
*people who need to use a straw are an exception here.