2/15: I Got Worms in the Mail

Vermicomposting and the Throwaway Culture

Reading

It is hard for us to accept that the way natural ecosystems work is exemplary: plants synthesize nutrients which feed herbivores; these in turn become food for carnivores, which produce significant quantities of organic waste which give rise to new generations of plants. But our industrial system, at the end of its cycle of production and consumption, has not developed the capacity to absorb and reuse waste and by-products. We have not yet managed to adopt a circular model of production capable of preserving resources for present and future generations, while limiting as much as possible the use of non-renewable resources, moderating their consumption, maximizing their efficient use, reusing and recycling them. (Laudato Si’, 2015, 22)

Reflection

Pope Francis decries the throwaway culture, one that is based in an industrial system whose purpose is only to produce and consume without adequate consideration to the byproducts and waste created in its wake. So often I’ve thrown away something without thinking twice about where it goes and what effect it may have on the environment. My relationship with trash is out of sight, out of mind: once it’s gone it isn’t my problem.

Yep. Reg wigglers are at the bottom of this bin, munching on veggie scraps.

Pope Francis’s writing has inspired me to begin to take a serious look at my relationship with garbage, and I’ve decided to try out vermicomposting, or basically having a bin of worms sitting in your garage eating all your biodegradable waste. Vermicomposing is great for the environment because it reduces waste in landfills and makes great fertilizer. From my brief research, it seems smaller and easier than composting outside, which requires regular tilling and more space. Having worms do the composting may be more practical for those living in suburban/urban settings.

I know it may sound a bit weird to speak so glowingly of worms, but I’ve found it to be kind of a spiritual practice because it reminds me of the importance of moving from a linear to a circular mode of production. Getting in touch with dirt seems appropriate for a season that kicks off the celebration by rubbing it on our foreheads, anyways.

Interested? Check your state university extension website for instructions on vermicomposting. You might be able to build a bin with what you have in your home, and you can buy worms online — or if you’re really DIY’ing it, from someone you know whose worm population is outgrowing their bin.

Questions

1. In what ways can I adjust my living practices to engage in a circular model of production akin to those prevalent in all natural ecosystems?
2. What are other areas of my life in which I participate in a “throwaway culture”, and how might I revisit those practices to engage in a culture of life?

Prayer

Lord God, we see in your creation examples of circular models of production.
Guide us to find ways to reduce, reuse, and recycle what we have been given to sustain us.
Help us to find natural means of converting our waste into biological material that can be used again.
Amen.

This post is a part of a 2018 Lenten reflection series on the environment drawing inspiration from Pope Francis’s encyclical, Laudato Si’. You can view this and other posts at the publication, Journeying Through Lent with Laudato Si’.

Drew Reynolds is a social worker, educator, and aspiring gardener living in Charlotte, NC.