Lessons of Scarcity

By Donna Cardillo

Because of a shortage of paper table napkins in the stores, my husband and I started cutting ours in half at the fold to conserve. That leaves us with a 2-ply napkin instead of a 4-ply one which works quite well. We realized that we don’t really need a whole napkin at every meal.

I am reminded of my in-laws who lived through the great depression of the last century. They had to learn how to conserve, do more with less, and even live without many things.

They carried those lessons throughout their entire lives. Even when they were in a more comfortable position later in life, they lived well but simply. Waste not, want not was their unspoken code.

In times of abundance (whether personal or global), there is a tendency, by some, to be wasteful, greedy, and have a sense of entitlement.

When scarcity arrives (and it almost always does at least once in a lifetime), we either learn/practice gratitude, appreciation, compassion, resourcefulness, and humility, or we make ourselves sick and become angry, demanding, complaining, blaming, and fear-mongering.

Each of us has a choice.

(Hint: The latter does not serve you, your loved ones, or the world.)

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