Pesach Waste

So we made it through another wonderful Pesach. Relatively smooth transition into a chometz-free zone, visit from Savta and Saba, lovely sedarim, visits to the Crayola factory and Philipsburg Manor, tidy final chag and now just have to turn the kitchen back over tomorrow.

I'm always struck and worried by the amount of waste we generate on Pesach -- foil, water bottles, disposables in the kitchen, contact paper etc. I think we do a good job of keeping it relatively moderate, but it's still far more than any other time of year.

I read an article once about netilat yadayim (ritual hand washing) and water preservation. The article suggested that some might consider using less water for this ritual in order to prevent wasting it. However, the article suggested that the ritual is actually an opportunity to really concentrate on our appreciation of water, that we should use all the water we need for it as a way of reminding us in other matters not to waste. I wish I could find the article now to make sure I'm remembering it correctly. But alas...

So since I actually did use up several paper cups for tea throughout the week and two disposable water bottles, and lots of foil, I feel refreshed in my resolve for the rest of the year to be conscious of the amount of waste I generate and to minimize it wherever possible.

On another note, one regret I had was that I was unable to make it to a single shiur before Yom Tov. When I feel as disappointed as I do about this, it helps me find a way to correct it, so now I'm resolving to try to have at least one significant Torah learning event per month. That sounds like an awfully low bar, but it's what I'm up to right now. (I do read a couple of halakhas each morning after davening and try to read something Jewish before bed, but this is meager by comparison.) I'm starting by actually leading one part of a discussion about Ruth at a Rosh Chodesh group next week.

Shavuah tov!