Tea Time + Tips on Reducing Waste at Home

A cup of ginger tea has been my favorite drink while reading the scripture. Ginger tea is soothing to the throat. It is packed with antioxidants that fight free radicals and toxins in our body. Add a tablespoon of honey and you’ll have a delicious and aromatic herbal drink. But there’s no more calming and assuring than the word of God. During this difficult time, we can only rely on Him, and trust that He’s always in control.

Tea Time + Tips on Reducing Waste at Home

Tea Time and Bible Study Amidst Lockdown 

Scripture frequently mentions food in various contexts. “And the prayer offered in faith will restore the one who is sick. The Lord will raise him up. If he has sinned, he will be forgiven.” - James 5:15

Flu or influenza is caused by a virus. We all know that several viruses can give us flu. While there are no known treatments for the virus, we can treat the symptoms. For example, body pains and fever with flu. It is advisable to drink lots of fluids to prevent dehydration caused by fever. My favorite is the hot ginger tea. It’s my go-to, initial home remedy at the onset of flu.

Allow me to share other favorite herbal teas.

Do you love gardening? I have a pot of lemongrass in my backyard. I make lemongrass calamansi cooler especially during summer time. The smell of lemongrass is very comforting. Add some calamansi and you get a dose of Vitamin C.

Lemongrass with Calamansi Tea

Life is full of surprises. Two weeks ago, we were busy at work. We rarely see our family. Look at us now, we’re confined to the four corners of our house. Don’t get me wrong, I am not complaining. I am thankful to be safe at home with my loved ones. This lockdown gave me more time to meditate and learn new things. My hope is that you will also see goodness in every difficult situation.

Remember, every flower blooms in its own time so trust that there’s a reason for everything. Care for some tarragon tea with blue ternate flowers.

Growing dill in containers

We’re on the 3rd week of the Enhanced Community Quarantine. Some of you may be fearful and searching for peace of mind. We cannot find that peace of mind in other people, there’s only one whom we can trust and depend on. We have friends, family members living alone, far from their loved ones. Don’t be scared, believe that there’s someone you can talk to. His  name is Jesus.

Keep Yourself Busy

You can do many things while staying home such as gardening and home organization. Why not start in the kitchen? Look for products that need to be discarded. Learn to segregate plastic from food waste at home.

Waste segregation means dividing waste into dry and wet. Dry wastes include empty cola or juice bottles, milk cartons, microwavable food containers, metal and even glass. Wet or biodegradable waste are garden, food and kitchen wastes. These are wastes that can be degraded by other living organisms such as microbes, bacteria, fungi etc. Do you know that the reason we need to recycle is because once food waste gets thrown with recyclable materials like plastic or carton, the latter can’t be used anymore and will just end up in the landfill? It’s better to segregate your waste at home then, so recyclers can do their job.

Segregation should be a habit, not an obligation. 

1. Schedule a weekly or monthly clean-up of your kitchen, from oven to refrigerator. 
2. Clean the kitchen counter before and after grocery shopping. Making sure to segregate empty bottles, boxes, cartons or tetra packs, plastic storage, and food containers.
3. Make sure you have enough space when preparing/cooking food.
4. Wash, dry all keep all dishes after use.
5. Ready a separate container for food scraps or food waste. 
6. Segregate food wastes from others for disposal. Use kitchen scraps in compost which can be used as an organic fertilizer for plants.
7. Milk cartons, plastic bottles, ice cream containers can be used as planters/pots. Not only will you help save mother earth, you also save money.
8. You can also use tetra packs as plant labels. Clean them first, cut into several popsicle sizes and use a marker to label.

Segregate Dry from Wet Waste

Reusable Bottles as Planters

Tetra packs in making plant labels

Use jars in storing flour, salt, and cereals.

Plastics are used in many types of food packaging. There are many reasons why they are needed in the production, one is to keep food safe. I strongly agree that certain types of single-use plastic should be banned. However, I still think that certain foods need to be stored for quite some time with plastic packaging. It makes food easier to transport and stays longer on shelves. We just need to make sure we segregate so that plastic packaging can find new life through recycling.

Kitchen Scrap to Compost

Add Kitchen Scraps to Compost

We can help protect the environment by supporting brands that commit to making all packaging recyclable. Let’s check the products we buy, know if their packaging is sustainably sourced, produced and delivered with positive impact along the food supply chain. At home, we use those cute packages for cookies as paper clip holders or essential oil holders. I use boxes of cereals for storing pens. Tissue paper holders as storage of school/office supplies. You see, there’s a lot we can do to help save mother earth. Think about it the next time you drink a warm cup of tea from your favorite coffee shop.

Home Gardening helps prevent food scarcity

Finally, let’s use this time to learn new skills or rekindle old hobbies. You too can grow herbs such as tarragon, blue ternate, ginger, and lemongrass in reusable plastic containers. Segregate waste at home. Throw vegetable scraps in compost and you’ll have good soil to grow edible plants. Gardening and home organization are fun and relaxing activities. Instead of worrying, make yourself busy. Take heart, everything will be fine if we just believe.