139

 Weltschmerz

I live in the westernmost part of Helsinki. At times, I need to go to the city centre. When it's nothing extremely urgent, I avoid taking the metro, and since I don't have a car or a bike, I walk. It takes me around 1.5 hours to walk there, but it's ok as not everything needs to be done most efficiently. In fact, taking my time to walk there makes me appreciate the distance and be more attentive to what is unfolding around me. While I walk, I don't listen to anything apart from the sounds of the city and nature, and I think. 

Being in central Helsinki where many shops are located is not very pleasant. I don't spend much time with people, but when I do, they are my friends and other fellow humans who practise sustainability in different ways. Seeing manifestations of consumerism causes those in the field of sustainability, I believe, to experience Weltschmerz. Small-scale practices, which I advocate, performed by some individuals in society do not feel enough. And of course it is also painful to see extreme wealth co-existing with poverty. 

I didn't spend much time in the centre. On my way back I found a hair tie on the ground. I washed it at home and will be using it. I believe it's a rather common practice within the zero-waste and more generally sustainability movement. Last time I needed a hair tie, I asked my fellow human if she had a spare one. 

138

 Rethinking very small things

Oftentimes, whenever I rethink my relationship with some object, I am reminded of the multiple times when my fellow humans said that such things do not matter. What matters, in their view, is who one votes for. While I don't disagree with the importance of what they advocate, I also believe that small-scale actions matter as well, and they matter a lot. I am happy to dedicate some of my time to thinking what I manifest in the world, what values, which structures I support, reproduce or transform in my everyday actions.

This black wallet was a gift from my ex partner. I've had it for many years and it is not broken or damaged. From a sustainability perspective, it is good to use items until they are no longer usable. But over time I've become uncomfortable with the brand name and the material of the wallet, as well as with the perceived need to have a dedicated item for my bank and id cards. I used this item every time I would pay for something, and I simply did not want to support this brand name. I wanted to manifest the value of simplicity. Thankfully I had a cotton pouch which came with some soaps that I bought from an eco-social business in Stockholm. I began using this pouch instead of the wallet and gave the wallet away.