Not that I don’t enjoy my hedonic pleasures… It’s attachment to them that’s dangerous, living a life of grasping for them at all costs. Blessings rain down upon me, and I feel obliged to appreciate them. Heaven forfend the day that I lose them, but I am prepared to live the rest of my days in a solitary jail cell should that ever come to pass, having relished each day until then.

Today, besides waking up alive, and all the other blessings of this life, I’m grateful for toilet paper. Think about it. How much nicer than mullein leaves or a rock! But what a colossal cost in trees. Millions of people across the planet don’t even have toilets, much less toilet paper. I’m grateful for the ability to look up the history of toilet paper with the tap of a few buttons. We are so fortunate that we can relegate our bodily waste to the backseat of our daily awareness, no muss no fuss. It’s an area where I’ve pampered myself, always springing for the cushy kind instead of cheap rough stuff; I figured solar power offsets a few other anti-planetary ‘consumer’ indulgences.

I’m grateful to Julie for introducing me to a socially and environmentally responsible company that makes bamboo (i.e., sustainable) toilet paper. Last spring when the paper-product shelves were bare in the stores, I ordered a case from Who Gives a Crap? It really is soft enough, and perfectly adequate in all other ways. It comes in bamboo-paper packaging so no plastic waste. I use the wrappers for fire starter. And they’re attractive enough to stack storage overflow on top of the toilet! These folks have a sense of humor, and they also donate 50% of their profits to a variety of charities that build toilets in the developing world, providing sanitation among many other benefits. I’m grateful there are companies like this one who put the well-being of people and the planet in the forefront of their business plans.