No more paper napkins….

Making changes in life can feel be really overwhelming. We tend to gravitate towards comfort, familiarity, and easy which, is normal. BUT sometimes we get caught in this circle that never ends and we are never thrown off to even see the greater possibilities. I truly believe that we need to get thrown off every now and again so that we can take a step back and see just what it is that we are mindlessly doing.

I think that is what is motivating this little challenge, the word mindlessly.

There is a lot, I mean A LOT going on in the world and the past three months have really brought some things to my attention. The heaviness of being mindless, I feel, sits on people more than they think. (I think we can all agree when we saw all the toilet paper in the world being sold out because of this pandemic.) And I am guilty of it too at times. But checking oneself is something my husband and I do constantly.

You have to check yo self before you wreck yo self….

Not just an Ice Cube song my friends.

You can really wreck yourself and those around you by being mindless. Not checking in and seeing how you can better your actions and life can create a heaviness without you realizing it. I have this saying, (I say it is a saying because I think I say it enough to become a saying…is that how it works? 🧐 Anyway…) “we have this one life to live, just one,” and if we continue to mindlessly go through life without bettering who we are then what are we doing?

What is the point of life then?

You know…..I lived mindlessly for a long time. My whole life there was a strong connection to the importance of life and a vision of peace and contentment that burned inside me but at the same time I lived mindlessly. I never stopped to think about the outcomes my actions. Or who I was in that very moment. It never occurred to me how I made people feel. And I certainly did not like change.

It wasn’t until I met my husband that I really began to self reflect. I remember the day he put everything into perspective for me, like it was yesterday. I was so quick to judge people. At one glance I thought I knew what they were all about and never even gave them any consideration. One day, after making a snap judgement about someone who walked by, he turned to me and said,

“You know, people bring all sorts of unique things to this world. You never know what anyone is dealing with or what they had to go through in their life. Maybe you should really take a second and think about the things you say before you say them. For all you know, they could be dealing with cancer or something.”

It was at that very moment that I checked myself.

Who was I to say anything about anyone. From then on, I have grown in more ways than I ever thought possible. Not just because of my husband, although he has been my huge rock through all sorts of uncomfortable growth, but because what is this life if we do not constantly check in to see who we are in that moment and want continue to flourish in life?

These thoughts are on a deeper note then what this post was meant to be about. But then again doesn’t it all relate?

We are discussing change.

Like mentioned before, no one likes change. No one likes to be uncomfortable. But I am here to tell you from first hand, being uncomfortable is necessary in life no matter how hard it may feel. The first challenge we are going to face is….

…Getting rid of paper napkins!

It is a small change but to some may feel like an unattainable one. ONLY because having paper napkins at ones disposal is familiar, comfortable and easy. But let’s really take a look here, you mindlessly grab a paper napkin to wipe a small mess and only to just throw it away. To then just grab another one a few minutes later. The concept behind paper napkins was brought to my attention a few months ago and I just couldn’t believe that I never thought of it before. The concept…

…You are literally buying paper napkins to throw them away. 🤯

My mind was blown when it was presented in this manner. Why in the F were we buying napkins? Shortly after this concept blew my mind, the pandemic hit and we went into quarantine. Which meant there were no napkins to buy even if I wanted to. This prompted forward momentum with this small change.

Napkins are unnecessary. I promise you will live without them.

Solution to not using paper napkins…

…Cloth napkins. That is right my friend. It is that simple. And there is really no need to even buy those, you can simply make some by using old sheets, t-shirts, or old fabric you have laying around. They do not need to be fancy.

Although having fancy cloth napkins can make you feel good, it is unnecessary to start out having to go out and buy some. The word we are working on here is mindless and we want to be less mindless and more mindful right? So take a look around your home and see what can be turned into a cloth napkin. Start building up that stack while you are going through that pack of paper napkins you have right now. That way the transition is a little smoother when the time comes.

How do cloth napkins make you more mindful?

What I never realized was that half the time my paper napkin didn’t even need to be thrown away because it simply wasn’t even used all the way. We actually realized this right before we made the transition. After eating we would all look at our paper napkins and if they could be used again, we would save them. The same goes for cloth napkins.

With cloth napkins, they need to be laundered. This keeps you mindful about using that cloth napkin more than once because ain’t nobody got time to do a bunch of laundry. So if it is not that dirty, use it until it is. Obviously, we are not keeping cloth napkins that are absolutely soiled, just ones that are slightly used. 😬

Making napkins are incredibly easy too.

Just take any cloth you have available cut it to desired size and either sew the edges with a sewing machine or even sew it by hand. Again, nothing needs to be fancy here people, just functional. If it makes you feel better, go out and buy a set of fancy napkins for those fancy dinners but use your homemade napkins everyday.

I hope you make this one small change with me. I feel like doing a monthly “change” challenge will help us find our groove with the change and actually feel good about it. Sometimes we need to just get used to stepping outside our comfort zone to realize how simple some things can be.

Plus, we are creating less waste….double win?

I think so!

Next month I am thinking we tackle….Household cleaners! 🤔 Who’s with me?!?!

Until next time…

Happy no napkin-ing!