Lately Sage has started to walk with me as opposed to sitting in the jogger, consuming snacks and water. It all started last week when I asked her if she wanted to wear her running shoes and walk on the bike bath too. She excitedly got her running shoes on and off we went. To my surprise, she walked about 1 mile. And, she would have walked further except I told her it might be a good idea if she took a break and drank some water. During our walk we saw lots of trash scattered on the sides of the path. I noticed it all but walked past it.Then Sage and I went on a walk again. This time, however, we not only noticed trash, but we picked some of it up. There was a huge rectangular box that we were able to fit into the jogger and bring home to our recycle bin. Next time, we discussed, we need to bring bags so we can pick up more trash.
Julie Barnhill, author of She's Gonna Blow, says,
The combination of our parental words, actions, and deeds will affect their[our kids'] perception of their heavenly Father -the Master Builder - over the course of their entire lives.I ask Sage to pick up her own trash at home all of the time. We talk about how it's not "OK" to litter and throw snack bags on the ground when we are finished eating the goldfish. This time it was my turn to pick up some trash and be an example to my kids. And I have to say that it doesn't come naturally -- this picking up trash that isn't even mine stuff. It interrupts my run, gets my hands dirty and adds time to an outing that already takes about 1 hr. Sob. Sob. Sob. As my uncle would say, "Do you want some french-Cries with your Whaaaaamburger?" Time to clean up God's earth, one piece of dirty trash at a time.
2 comments:
Eric's dad always stuffs a plastic bag in his jeans pocket when he goes on hikes. Then he picks up any trash he sees along the way. I used to think that it would get my hands dirty, and I'd have to carry an extra thing, too, on my hike. But, since you told me this story last week, I've re-thought the whole thing. And yesterday, I started picking up trash at the park while my girls were on the playground. I even found a nice size piece of broken glass that could easily cut a child's hands or feet. So, thanks for motivating me to "do my part" for the environment.
It's funny, my Amber always wants to bring along a bag so she can pick up "treasures" on our walks: bottle tops, straws, candy wrappers, rubber bands, etc. She takes them home and sorts them out in the back yard. Then I throw them away later. So, in a way, she's been helping the environment for a long time.
Oh, that's so awesome!! I know that I have told the kids soooo many times to not pick up things in the parking lot because it's "dirty". I always laugh at myself though cause I see them throwing it back down on the ground. The last few months, I actually have been telling them to find a trash can, and I even do the same, just to set an example. It's great to hear and be even more motivated from someone else.
Thanks for all the cute stories!
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