FACES & PLACES GREEN LIVING MAY 2009   In Celebration of Earth Day 2009 by Hope Blaythorne As earth day approached this year I have been bouncing around various themes for an Earth Day column. So much of the “climate crisis” headlines that we have all been swimming in for the past few months highlight the hard benefits of our actions- keeping things out of landfills, cleaner air from cleaner fuel etc . I have noticed some other “soft” benefits that have come from these efforts.  So for Earth day, I‘d like to focus on some soft benefits that have come out of adapting my life to accommodate my desire to reduce my carbon footprint and the impact on my family.  These soft benefits are interesting to witness as in our “previous life” my husband and I were gadget freaks. Kitchen gadgets, electronic gadgets, garden gadgets, you name it. We were  early adopters of the scooba (robotic floor cleaner) and the I-phone and the mango pitter.  However, as we move forward, under the purchasing mantra of “Do we really need this?” and “What value does this item truly provide” it is interesting how the tug of “desire” masks the real “need”.  My ego might claim I “need/want” that new  i-phone with more  memory etc, but I already own a good functional i-phone, so is there a real need, or just that tug of desire?  I have been doing this desire/need tug of war for a while, and also have watched as my older children are getting into the swing of the game, in a positive way. I try to justify every purchase from the perspective that everything I own, owns a piece of me.  As I strive to simplify, owning a new gadget takes on more time and “ownership” responsibility than I am willing to take on. Simplicity has morphed into my psyche and now I am interested in the ease of ownership; from the “not acquiring” perspective-versus the newer, better and fastest that I was sold on in the past.  I must say one outcome is that I don’t experience the “buyer’s hangover” from this approach. Actually it is massively empowering, as I use this “need/desire” dilemma to stimulate creativity- another soft benefit that is emerging, and not just in my home.  With the example of the I-phone, I may think I “need” a new i-phone, but what if: I freecycle one from someone else, or buy one used from ebay, thus recycling one versus a new purchase. OR the optimal choice - what if I simply modify the way I utilize my current phone so I can continue to use the phone I already have but in line with the reasons why I want the new phone. (This was the option I chose) I can now understand how innovation is stimulated in a recession, as buying more and better is not the answer to creativity but trying to do more with less is the mother of invention. So on Earth day and beyond, I send creative energy to one and all to explore those “soft benefits” that come out of your desire to make changes not as a chore, but as a creative challenge. The rewards for yourself and your family are more than just helping this earth; it is also serving yourself and empowering your creativity. For more Earth Day information visit: http://greenbaroness.blogspot.com/