Judith Russenberger

Counting on … day 104

10th May 2024

Having said that we try to minimise waste, should what we recycle be seen as recycled waste? Flour and oats both come in large paper sacks. The sacks are single use which arguable might seem wasteful but they can be recycled. They are good for collecting all the other paper that goes out for recycling. Margerine comes in plastic tubs – again single use but recyclable.

One reason that our dustbin fills slowly is because we can recycle much of the ‘waste’ that comes into the house. We recycle paper and card, aluminium foil, tins, glass and standard plastics via the Council’s kerb side collection. We take soft plastics to the Coop for recycling, toothpaste tubes to Boots, medical blister packs to Superdrug. There is a recycling bin for small electrical goods at the library and for batteries at Robert Dyas.

Recycling is good and worth doing but it comes with its own consumption of resources and production of emissions. And we know that in reality many things that are labelled as recyclable are not recycled – often because they are not put into the appropriate recycling bin. Greater thought needs to be given by designers and producers to reduce what needs to be recycled and how often.

The aim becomes not consuming more than you need to consume, buying less and ensuring the best and most efficient use of what we do consume.

Counting on … day 103

9th May 2024

One of the main ways we minimise waste is through using refill services. Our milk, including oat milk, is delivered to the door in refilled glass bottles. Apple and Bees – a local health food shop – has a refill service for laundry and washing up liquids – whilst from The Source store in Richmond we buy most of our groceries – sugar, dried fruit, grains, yeast flakes, salt and spices, as well as items such as nut butters (ground/ processed direct into your jar) olive oil, tahini and tamari – all into the refillable jars/ bottles and bags that we bring from home. And our local cafe and coffee roastery has a refill service for coffee beans. This means that there is very little that we need to buy that comes with additional packaging – typically items such as vegan butter and margerine, tin tomatoes, tofu, miso and yeast extract.

Counting on … day 102

8th May 2024

Waste free and plastic free are closely linked as waste free includes plastic free but goes a step further exploring how we can reduce the unnecessary use – ie waste – of resources. Why do sandwiches/ cakes etc come in both a paper bag and a paper carrier bag? Why do toothpaste tubes comes in a cardboard box? Why do we reuse glass milk bottles but not glass wine bottles?

Looking for waste free options is another way in which we go about shopping and we can see the outcome in the frequency with which we put out our dustbin – maybe once or twice a year.

Counting on … day 101

7th May 2024

Plastic is such an invasive pollutant. A few years ago we kept a tally over a week of how much plastic was coming into the house and then worked out whether there were ways of avoiding such plastic in the future. Sometimes the solution was simple – not putting fruit in a plastic bag at the supermarket. Sometimes it needed a little more research – finding a toilet paper that didn’t come wrapped in plastic (we now buy recycled paper toilet roll from Naked Sprout, a B Corp, which comes in a cardboard box).

More importantly the solution was a change in attitude – don’t buy it if it’s wrapped in plastic whether it’s a cake in the cafe or a pen in the stationers. And of habit – taking a keep cup or refillable water bottle when out and about.

We’re not plastic totally free – my husband enjoys sliced supermarket bread and even vegan butter and margarine come in plastic packaging. During the Big Plastic Count we totalled 6 pieces of plastic.

Counting on … day 100

6th May 2024

We are lucky enough to have a good sized garden. Not being successful growers of vegetables, we have chosen to make the garden more of a wildlife haven. We don’t use pesticides, herbicides or fertilisers – other than home made compost. Nor do we use peat. This approach also means we aren’t buying things that come in plastic bottles, bags or containers.

Over the years we have planted a number of fruit trees – apple, plum, pear, cherry, fig – as well as having raspberries, strawberries, rhubarb, currant and gooseberry bushes and a grape vine. In between the fruit grows a mix of herbs, self seeding salads and green leaf crops, bulbs, and wild flowers. Other flower beds are a mix of roses, herbs, and perennial plants, whilst the lawns remain uncut for most of the year. I have tried to transform these into meadows by transplanting into the grass suitable plants such as buttercups, plantain, ox eye daisies and sorrel etc. The garden also has a pond with flags, buttercups and pond weed, and is home to small pond creatures including dragon fly larvae. Usually there is frogspawn but none this year, which is disappointing.

We replenish a number of bird feeders daily and have a bee hotel and a dead hedge all to encourage more wildlife.

Sixth Sunday of Easter

5th May 2024

Reflection – readings follow on below

Psalm 98 extols the victory of God that will extend to the ends of the earth, and which will be celebrated with joy by not just the people but by all creation – plants and animals, and hills and rivers. It is prophetic, encouraging us to look forward and to work towards that future age of glory. And in the fullness of time that victory will be won: God’s kingdom will reign supreme over the whole earth.

If Christ’s resurrection shows his victory over death, then surely the challenge and the hope now is for Christ’s victory over the world! Here I am using the world to describe that rule, that way of life, in which humans are destructive of the environment, are destructive of the wellbeing of their brethren, are greedy and selfish, and who repel all that is good and loving and of God. To achieve victory over the world will be to establish God’s kingdom, God’s rule firmly and for ever on the earth. This victory will produce peace and wellbeing, justice and compassion for all. It will remove war fare and aggression, persecution and oppression. It will end exploitation and build up the common good.

This endeavour – the establishment of God’s kingdom on earth – is one that is ongoing, that is ceaselessly being pursued by Christ through the power of the Holy Sprit. It is an endeavour which Christ shares with us, inviting us to be alongside him. As the gospel of John reminds us, Jesus has appointed us to go forth and bear fruit. We are to establish – plant – God’s commandments and love throughout all the earth. These commands will achieve victory if we adhere to them and share them, ‘for whatever is born of God conquers the world’.

This is not to say that the task will be easy. We see in the gospel stories how Jesus’s disciples – even when they were living alongside him – found his example hard to follow. But we are commanded, and must strive, to love our siblings for that is how we love God. So often however – our ego, our self confidence, our self assurance, gets in the way. We doubt that others will behave in like manner towards us leaving us exposed to suffering and loss and ridicule. We fear giving too much love – and too much of what we own – to our siblings for fear they will not reciprocate.

Is that why we come to church, we we form communities, so that we can support and encourage and reassure each other of the importance and the power of loving our siblings? Maybe we need to remind ourselves and renew our acceptance, of the gift of the Holy Spirit? Jesus does not leave us alone to undertake this endeavour of establishing God’s kingdom on earth. He is with us all the way -just sometimes we look away or ignore him.

Be bold, be full of love.

Acts 10:44-48

While Peter was still speaking, the Holy Spirit fell upon all who heard the word. The circumcised believers who had come with Peter were astounded that the gift of the Holy Spirit had been poured out even on the Gentiles, for they heard them speaking in tongues and extolling God. Then Peter said, “Can anyone withhold the water for baptising these people who have received the Holy Spirit just as we have?” So he ordered them to be baptised in the name of Jesus Christ. Then they invited him to stay for several days.

Psalm 98

1 Sing to the Lord a new song, *
for he has done marvellous things.

2 With his right hand and his holy arm *
has he won for himself the victory.

3 The Lord has made known his victory; *
his righteousness has he openly shown in the sight of the nations.

4 He remembers his mercy and faithfulness to the house of Israel, *
and all the ends of the earth have seen the victory of our God.

5 Shout with joy to the Lord, all you lands; *
lift up your voice, rejoice, and sing.

6 Sing to the Lord with the harp, *
with the harp and the voice of song.

7 With trumpets and the sound of the horn *
shout with joy before the King, the Lord.

8 Let the sea make a noise and all that is in it, *
the lands and those who dwell therein.

9 Let the rivers clap their hands, *
and let the hills ring out with joy before the Lord,
when he comes to judge the earth.

10 In righteousness shall he judge the world *
and the peoples with equity.

1 John 5:1-6

Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ has been born of God, and everyone who loves the parent loves the child. By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God and obey his commandments. For the love of God is this, that we obey his commandments. And his commandments are not burdensome, for whatever is born of God conquers the world. And this is the victory that conquers the world, our faith. Who is it that conquers the world but the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?

This is the one who came by water and blood, Jesus Christ, not with the water only but with the water and the blood. And the Spirit is the one that testifies, for the Spirit is the truth.

John 15:9-17

Jesus said to his disciples, “As the Father has loved me, so I have loved you; abide in my love. If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commandments and abide in his love. I have said these things to you so that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be complete.

“This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. No one has greater love than this, to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. You are my friends if you do what I command you. I do not call you servants any longer, because the servant does not know what the master is doing; but I have called you friends, because I have made known to you everything that I have heard from my Father. You did not choose me but I chose you. And I appointed you to go and bear fruit, fruit that will last, so that the Father will give you whatever you ask him in my name. I am giving you these commands so that you may love one another.”

Counting on … day 99

3rd May 2024

Food waste is an issue in homes too. We aim to minimise such waste by not buying more perishable food items than we need. Getting used to how much a person eats, and how much makes a serving, helps. As does a shopping list. Additionally as most of our meals are cooked from scratch it is is easy to prepare only as much food as is going to be eaten. If there are leftovers they are refrigerated and become the next day’s lunch.

Tea bags, coffee grounds, the outer leaves of a cabbage or onion skins all go in the compost heap. Being vegan there are no bones or skins to be disposed. Root vegetables are washed and used, peel on. Apple cores become cider vinegar, and lemon rinds become preserved lemon. Excess amounts of root and cabbage-like vegetables become sauerkraut, and surplus fruit from the garden is bottled, or made into jam or chutney. During the summer the excessive growth of nasturtium leaves and rocket are made into pesto and bottled for use in the winter.

And it is surprising how many different fruits and vegetables you can use to make a delicious soup!

Further reading – https://wrap.org.uk/resources/report/household-food-and-drink-waste-united-kingdom-2021-22

https://www.lovefoodhatewaste.com

Eco Tips

Counting on … day 98

2nd May 2024

I would like to say that we grow all our own fruit and vegetables – but the snails have a different view on this! We get the bulk of our fruit and vegetables from OddBox which specialises in filling its boxes with foods that would otherwise go to waste – either because of a glut in the fields or a downturn in demand at the supermarket, or items being too big/ too small/ too wonky. The produce comes from the UK, Europe and other parts of the globe (but only if it has come by land or sea – not air).

OddBox reports “Every box makes a difference – by rescuing a Medium Fruit & Veg box every week for three months, you’d save a whopping 85kg of fruit and veg. Roughly 200 meals’ worth.”

This is topped up with some from the garden – salad leaves, nettles and chard, and summer fruits and berries – and from a local deli cum greengrocer.

Ideally all the produce we buy would be organic which we could do by swooping an organic fruit and veg box – but on balance we have gone for the reducing food waste option. Food waste accounts for 10% of greenhouse gas emissions. Food wasted is also water wasted and a poor utilisation of arable land.

https://www.oddbox.co.uk/why

Further reading on the issues around food waste – https://www.sofea.uk.com/blog/the-environmental-impact-of-food-waste/

Counting on … day 97

1st May 2024

As well as seeking a sustainable supplier for beans and pulses, we have also sought out sustainably motivated suppliers for other food stuffs.

Our flour comes from Priors Flour and is made from locally grown organic grains which are milled in a windmill! Its small scale business model maintains good human relations – a person who answers questions, and a company which can shut down to allow staff a holiday – and preserves an old but still highly functional building. And the flour is full of good feel and flavour.

Our oats – for porridge and oatcakes – comes from Pimhill which grows, mill and sells organic oats, and which come compactly packed in paper packaging. (Waste and plastic free is another feature we support).

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Counting on … day 96

30th April 2024

Even within the option a vegan diet, it is possible to look for the more sustainable options. The bulk of our protein comes from beans and pulses. By buying these from Hodmedod we can opt for beans and pulses – as well as pasta, chia seeds, quinoa and other staples – that are grown in the UK. This supports the UK’s farming industry and especially in these cases, smaller farms and businesses including many innovating with new varieties. It also reduces food miles – the distances over which food is transported from field to plate.

As well as buying dried beans, we buy bean flours from Hodmedod which adds to the richness of the dishes we eat. We also buy Brazil nuts from them which are wild-harvested nuts that come directly from the Kayapó people of Brazil. This is solidarity trading which ensures the protection of the local forest and an income for the indigenous people.