I love sustainable impact. When I see examples of positive steps, especially when someone had a choice, I find myself energised. There are situations, and I am reminded of one today, where as good as it is, I find myself wondering why the steps did not go further.
The reminder today is a coffee shop. Without any overt messaging, you quickly knew they were focused on sustainability and making a positive impact. Coffee grounds were available if anyone wanted to use them for compost. Plastic straws were not available. Positive choices were quietly on display, and to my applause, the choice had been made to not force this on anyone else.
It was an instant reflection on how I could make choices in my own life. Without applause or a pat on the back from others, I could do the right thing for the right reason in the right way. As I reveled in the way my aspirations and the coffee shop were aligned, I noticed a small “thing” in the corner of my eye. Stir sticks.
It is a small thing for two reasons. I never use stir sticks because I enjoy my coffee black, no sugar, milk variation, or flavouring of any kind. Second, it is a small thing. For all the great steps this shop had taken, for reasons unknown, they still used plastic stir sticks.
As the emotions began to rise within me, I found myself looking in the mirror. Life whispered quietly, “you didn’t think, did you, that just by pointing your finger at others you would distract God from seeing all your misdoings and from coming down on you hard?” (Romans 2.3). In the context of wins and missed opportunities, I am encouraged by the wins but challenged to learn and grow. I am like the coffee shop in that we are both works in progress. There are examples where each of us took the right decisions. Equally, we are halfway to our aspirations.
I enjoyed my coffee and I celebrated. I also cheered for the efforts still to come.
