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Giving Back

We’re almost into February of 2019, and although all of our New Years goals are still fully intact, I personally am a firm believer in always setting new goals for ourselves. To push that further, I believe we need to always be setting new goals for ourselves in order to be giving ourselves a new way to grow. Goals are OF COURSE important, but there’s really nothing quite like GROWTH.

Don’t be alarmed- growth comes from many different places. It can surely come from learning new hobbies, setting new lifestyle goals, taking a trip somewhere unknown, diving into a new relationship and of course, so many other ways. Growth even comes from doing something selfless, random acts of kindness that makes us learn something about ourselves. These acts of kindness make us feel good, and growth goes hand-in-hand with feeling good, it makes us reach for more because that’s what serotonin does. It releases into our brain and makes us realize one thing: those happy good feelings are the good kind and we want more of them; we crave them.

I feel confident that the world is good. It’s in my bones and I refuse to be told otherwise. But I also know the struggle of balancing life, and then finding time to help others balance theirs- it’s a very conflicting feeling to want to be good to the world, but also to ourselves. DISCLAIMER: it doesn’t need to be this huge sacrifice to give back.

So what really gets me in the New Year mood is setting a simple goal for myself: how can I not only be better to myself this year, but how can I be a better person all around; how can I squeeze in giving back to the world?

I’m going to tell you 3 Simple Ways you can give back in the New Year without exhausting too much energy or time, and without getting distracted from your own wants and needs. Just to spare the unwanted thoughts: not wanting to exhaust too much energy, or time, but still wanting to help, doesn’t make you any less selfless, It just means you’re human. . Life is hard enough worrying about ourselves, it becomes a whole other ball park when we throw the rest of the world into the equation. So let’s keep it simple:

1. Buy Reusable Bags

This might seem silly, but what many people want to turn their heads on is the daunting reality about our planet and in case you didn’t know: It’s in danger. And while I don’t expect you to quit your job and head out on a six month sea excursion to clean garbage out of the ocean- I do think a quite easy fix is to A) Reuse your own bags every single time. Did I mention that reusable bags won’t break on you the way the plastic bags will? Bonus! They also allow you to put a lot more groceries in one bag, another bonus! B) Say no to the plastic bag at the store when you have a carrying amount of things [meaning something you CAN easily carry but the bag is just convenient] And lastly, C. save yourself money. Many of these big companies, and even states are creating laws FORCING you to pay +.10 cents per bag. Yup that’s you Hoboken. They’re on board, you should be too. Plus you look super hip when you really care and when you have 10 hundred reusable bags falling out of your trunk like me(LOL, kidding but not really). It really is simple, and if you, and myself, and maybe 10 of your friends stop using plastic bags- well darn that’s a lot of people cutting back on unnecessary plastic. {JANUARY 22 HOBOKEN HAS BANNED ALL SINGLE USE PLASTIC BAGS; unfortunately this is a town mandated rule, we hope soon all of New Jersey will follow in its footsteps—RIGHT ON FOR HOBOKEN!}

2. Try One Day A Week Without Eating Meat

But what will I do? You will survive, and so will one more innocent animal. Over 56 billion animals are killed each year. There are over 80,000 types of edible plants and we continue to eat the same 4-5 dead animals. Plants are alive. They make us feel alive more over. And I’m no vegan, and I’m just about completely rid of meat, but those numbers are shocking, and they’re real. They’re more real than the dead chicken, cow, lamb, and pig we eat regularly. OH and don’t worry, just about every single plant contains protein. Animals consume MORE of our natural resources than humans do, and that’s just to raise them to kill them for food. Now how ass backwards is that one? Read all of that again and simply try this: one day a week can be meatless, you will be doing yourself and our planet a HUGE favor! GO!

DOCUMENTARIES TO WATCH IN THE NEW YEAR: (if this interests you)

Cowspiracy
What the Health
Animal Equality

3. Donate What No Longer Serves You

I’ve written about this before, and I’ll sum it up again quite quickly: people need those things you are unsure if you’ll ever need again. Let them go. Old blankets, old hats, gloves, mittens, shoes. People desperately need them. They don’t have 1,2,3, maybe 4 pairs of jeans. They have 0. They need my size 26 jeans more than the body I’ll never have again does. See what I mean? Holding onto old clothing is like holding onto our past: we’re not going that way! You will be simply clearing your living space, which is a whole other topic of feel good vibes, and you’ll be helping out those desperately in need. This also goes for old furniture. DO NOT just leave old furniture on the curb! Places like Big Brothers & Sisters will come pick up the furniture free of charge and donate it to those in need! If you need numbers of places to donate,

HERE ARE 4 LOCAL CHARITIES / DROP OFF BOXES

1. Hoboken Family Alliance
2. Red Cross
3. Big Brothers & Sisters
4. Pick up Purple – picks up donations right from your door!
It might seem small, or it might seem big, but I promise you small steps in the right direction will bring us back to the simple joys life has. It feels GOOD to hold the door for a line of 10 people. It feels GREAT to help someone who didn’t ask for it. Over the years, we’ve lost touch with this simple idea of living. Eating clean, simple foods has become a chore; getting outside is another job most people don’t have time for. Live simply. Say Thank You. Invest in some groovy reusable bags. Donate your clothes that don’t fit, it clears your space and your head. Save the pigs!!! If you like the lady in the coffee shops sweater, let her know! Life’s way too short to not be living this way. Love you, mean it.