Overshadowed by consumption!!!

Yesterday, I ordered a kurti and this morning I found my grandmother-in-law re-stitching her blouse for 5th or 6th time. She believes in preserving, modifying and reusing. My mother in law cleans out the milk packets by washing them with water which I won't but she doesn't refuse plastic bag while purchasing packets. My grandmother is a strict non-user of plastic. In fact, she keeps her own steel cans/jars and boxes for carrying water and food items whereas my mother keeps on stacking plastic bags for further use. She will grab one even on the purchase of small items.

I have always enjoyed wearing passed on clothes from my elder siblings to whom I looked up as cool style icons. My younger siblings haven't been through this feeling of elation of flaunting some stylish clothing. Till the time I grew up, transferring books weren't a trend. Old books from seniors had those important marked questions which younger ones never found in new books.

Our  lifestyle has given birth to new fashion trends changing every month. Increased purchasing power have led to high buying and discarding tendency. With generations, the knowledge of preserving and minimising waste have disappeared.

Smartphones have started becoming obsolete every few months. Other electronics also clutter our households and there's no awareness about their proper disposal. From kitchen waste to electronic waste, turned and dejected garments, plastics to wrappers everything lands up in the garbage accumulating on roadsides.

Government is responsible for the safe disposal, municipalities are accountable for clearing and cleaning up. We as people and individuals are free of taking no charge? Is it right on part of us to keep adding up to the waste and blame authorities? 
Individuals still prefer single-use plastics in abundance knowing that they might end up in cow's stomach or oceans affecting marine life. And all is done under the safe umbrella of 'where is the alternative?'

Our impulse buying is such that majority of stuff remains with no utility in our houses but creates demand for businesses who respond by producing more and burdening resources.

My personal opinions have been shaped gradually after coming across numerous articles, statistics and facts about disruptions in the environment due to consumerism. We live in a society having an enormous amount of criticism for those who try to reduce their waste. May it be carrying own shopping bags and not paying extra for plastic bags in malls or owning less number of devices, having a smelling kitchen waste composter at home or using peels of vegetables for making pickles or greywater recycling, everything is questioned in light of keeping things elegant.

So, if I have to take a step today it would be ignorant of people who don't understand how consumerism and environment are linked.  If we fail to sync in with what is required by nature, Earth won't be the same nurturing mother.