I am inspired by a very timely message about butting consumerism which has prompted me to make a small change this year with the aim of caring for our planet and being money wise too. The message I refer to has been crafted and shared by Tomfoolery in his characteristic eloquent way.

Black Friday is next Friday the 27 November 2020. Having been in New York City on Black Friday, a city which is a shopping Mecca in its own right, and having been caught up in the craziness of shopping the Black Friday sales like sales were going out of fashion, I have seen the addictiveness and insanity of acquisition of goods up close.

But this year is different – I feel lucky to remain healthy during a year when so many have become ill. My perspective has shifted and I find myself tuned into not just my health, the health and well being of people around me and further afield, but also of the health of environments that our communities inhabit globally.

For my part, I am pledging to abstain from partaking in the 2020 Black Friday sales frenzy. What will your approach be? I am not suggesting going ‘cold turkey’. I understand that many have planned a purchase or two that they have saved for over an extended period of time to take advantage of lower prices and that these items could be intended to address an important need. I am instead referring to excessively purchasing ‘wants’ as opposed to ‘needs’. Even a small reduction in the purchases that were originally intended for Black Friday 2020 would be a good start. Reduction as an option should go beyond the Good Friday event if we are to be serious about turning gradually away from overconsumption and from simply throwing things away to buying mostly what we need and sometimes what we want to fixing items or donating items for recycling or re-purposing. If you are trying to bag a bargain, do so whilst making eco friendly choices.

The oceans and the life that is sustained by it needs urgent sustained action by us. The planet is bearing the heavy burden of our insatiable urge to buy more and more stuff. Having unquenchable wants that we struggle to curtail can only be a reflection of our greed and our selfishness. Reducing our consumption in all aspects of our lives is healthy and becoming increasingly imperative. Let’s not leave big craters of landfill which in essence is poison for the earth and the creatures, big and small that live off it. Consider a shift in mindset – future generations are not inheriting the planet from us. We have borrowed it from them. We therefore owe it to them to hand back the planet which is on loan to us in pristine condition.

Tom’s message can be viewed via the link below:

https://youtu.be/B2xHaGswMYM