Going Inkless

     I've always had an uneasy relationship with the act of throwing things away.  Like most things this deeply felt, it's been with me from childhood and probably has no clear incident at its root.  For one thing, as a child, throwing things out probably means that you were pressed into some pointless cleaning exercise like straightening your room.  Maybe you spent too many Wednesday nights dragging heavy metal trash cans to the curb.  So, it's bound to carry some negative associations.  For another thing, growing up poor means your small catalog of thing you have is diminishing by one every time something goes in the trash.  You think twice about it when you live under the cloud of never having enough.  If something could still be useful, you tend to hang on to it because it saves you doing without in the future.  In my house, all our hand-me-down clothes were handed down through five sisters and into the rag-bag after they became...

One of our daughters has an interest in fashion and recently participated in her first fashion show at her university. The theme was "Green Chic", and all the designs featured sustainable materials and waste-reducing techniques. Participants constructed their creations using organic fabrics and dyes, recycled thrift store finds, or creative pattern making that minimized scrap. The idea was a noble one for an industry often accused of being frivolous. Our daughter jumped in with both feet, promising to design and construct five pieces for the show. She sketched out her visions to begin the project, then roamed thrift stores and begged cast-offs from family and friends. This all may sound mundane, but there was a pretty tall hurdle in her way. Our daughter had never sewn a thing in her life. I don't think she was entirely blind to the scope of her undertaking. Like most of us, she sometimes approaches new things with trepidation, but when the idea is hers, she has admirable...