This summer the McClain family embarks on the adventure of composting. I’m not a particularly ‘green’ person. I’m not afraid to get my hands dirty, but at the same time… I’m not game for complicated living. I like throwing things away that I no longer need without thought of its reuse. However, my kids come home on a regular basis touting the virtues of recycling, taking care of our environment and all that other ‘green-living’ jargon. (Do I sound jaded?)
Here’s the thing. As easy as it is to toss plastic in the trash can I can’t argue my son’s point when he reminds me that we should care about the environment God gave us. So, over the past few years my family has made some lifestyle changes. We began recycling and are better at taking the initiative to separate our trash and recycle what we can. We watch our lights and make sure we turn out lights in rooms we’re not occupying. And over time we replace equipment in our home that will conserve water and energy.
Our next ‘green’ adventure is composting. I found some pretty simple instructions to make a home-made composter with worms and all. (Wha?!?) It’s called Vermicomposting. I won’t go into detail… you can Wikipedia it here. Essentially it will reduce the amount of waste that ends up in the McClain family garbage can.
However, this adventure opens up opportunity for a new line of conversations with my kids. As we learn about how composting works for our environment I can connect them to how God works in our lives. As we learn the process of how a leftover apple core can turn into rich garden soil, I can teach them how God takes the scraps of life and turns them into rich nutrients to help us grow. How He never wastes a thing (good or bad) when it comes to enriching us so we might produce the fruits of the Spirit.
When you see my kids on the weekends, ask them how the composting is going. This should be an entertaining summer project.
