4 Kids | Flushing the Toilet

Greetings readers! Strange title for this blog, right? I'll explain.

You see, I'm on a little vacation right now, but wanted to share something I think you can all get excited about.

 

I spent some time recently on a beautiful beach and was just overwhelmed at how incredible it is to spend time in a purely natural setting. It really takes your breath away. And it got me thinking.

 

I'm finally starting to believe that we can all do something to help our planet. And since I don't like being told what I can't do, I'm going to start thinking of things I can do that will help the planet. I'm getting some help from a book I picked up: The Green Book: The Everyday Guide to Saving the Planet One Simple Step at a Time by Elizabeth Rogers and Thomas M. Kostigen. It's in the adult collection, but I'm telling you it really is simple enough that all ages can read and learn from it.

 

So what am I going to do?

 

Shorter showers. Oh this won't be easy, but I'm going to do it. I know people who spend 10 to 15 minutes in the shower. No judgment. I haven't timed myself, but I'm sure I'm close to 10 minute showers myself. Not anymore. I've learned that every 2 minutes you save on your shower can conserve more than 10 gallons of water. If we all could save just one gallon of water in our daily shower, it would make a huge impact. Huge, I tell you. So I guess I'll be singing a few less songs during my morning shower. In and out. That's my new motto. I'm trying to do my part.

 

Another thing I am going to do is stop standing in front of an open refrigerator while I decide what I want to eat. Keeping that refrigerator door open is not a great idea. The refrigerator is the single-biggest energy consuming kitchen appliance. We've all heard how important it is to conserve energy. And if I can help by thinking about what I want before I open the refrigerator...well, it seems like a very simple -- and easy -- thing.

 

The next thing might take some getting used to. I grew up sharing a bathroom with my 3 siblings, and I'm not sure how we would have been able to implement this. Here's the thing: Try to flush the toilet just one less time per day, and you'll save about 4.5 gallons of water -- as much water as the average person in Africa uses for  whole day of drinking, cooking, bathing and cleaning. Thank you The Green Book for teaching me this.

 

I'm trying not to think of the things that I've done which are wasteful, and therefore not helping our beautiful planet. I'm going to think positively and make some changes that will ultimately help our planet.

 

We can -- each and every one of us -- take simple steps that will have a positive effect on our planet. I'm really going to do this. Are you with me?

 

In the meantime, happy reading!