Tissue Paper, Towelette

Taking home unused (or used) tissue papers or towelettes gives me 4 simple pleasures. First, it brings back fond childhood memories. Second, it makes me feel proud of being environmentally conscious. Third, I'm able to save money. Fourth, the towelettes help me mend our precious-but-seriously-torn pants & shorts effectively!

Taking home unused tissue papers and towelettes used to be just Lola Mana's practice. She never fails to do this when she has the opportunity. The unused tissue papers go to our tissue holder for our use. The used ones are for cleaning the stove or the jalousies. For the stove, they absorb oil very well so cleaning is easier. For the jalousies, they effectively grab dust leaving a spotless gloss. The towelettes on the otherhand are washed and re-used.

I used to feel embarrassed whenever Lola Mana would let me gather these items. I also thought this was wrong. But after observing a number of waiters throw them in the garbage anyway, I began to appreciate Lola's effort. Now, I also realized I was fortunate to be taught (and trained) at a very young age the basics of protecting the environment. Unconsciously, I had been practicing the 5Rs - reduce, reuse, recycle, respect, responsible. I'm so glad I internalized this practice! Imagine, with the simple act of reusing and recycling I'm able to reduce waste. More than that, without knowing it, I've been advocating respect to the nature and sense of responsibility as well! So everytime I have the opportunity, I put these items in my bag with great pleasure, specially the towelette!

Yes, you heard me right. I find pleasure in bringing these items home specially the towelette! The main reason, I discovered they are also useful in mending our favorite-but-seriously-torn (in the butt area) cotton pants & shorts! Their being soft make them very good patches. Look at the pictures below to see what I mean!

I was able to prolong the life of husband's favorite shorts.




















This one is my favorite pants.

















The towelettes I used for the shorts are those I gathered from our dinner-outs within Manila. Those in the rugged pants were from Cathay Pacific & FinAir, during my recent business trip to Europe.

Indeed, taking home these pieces of paper can be embarrasing or a waste of time. But I hope this sharing will shed better light, urge us to take a second look at the tissue papers/towelettes we will leave behind and remember the 5Rs of protecting the environment. I'd be happy to hear your own story of the pleasures you get from doing this simple act!