It is my 38th birthday today. My incredible children made me cookies yesterday for today's 'traditional' birthday breakfast. They insisted that I offered no help at all, they worked together and I did not hear one cross word from behind the closed door, they make perfect, delicious cookies and the kitchen was spotless at the end. They have showered me with gifts and affection, (which has gone a long way to making up for the fact that my husband is away on a school trip,) and I am proud of them and also of how their behaviour reflects how special birthdays have been for them.
The cookies were chocolate chip cookies which has added to my Fair Trade angst which leads me to my Baby Steps. Baby Step Number One is going to be making sure that all the things that we sometimes buy Fair Trade, we always buy Fair Trade: that is coffee, tea, sugar, bananas and orange juice. Yes, these are more expensive but they are easily available in my local supermarket so I cannot fall back on the excuse of it being hard work.
Baby Step Number Two is to start using Fair Trade chocolate chips. I cook with quite a lot of chocolate chips and I have found that Doves Farm produce a Fair Trade version and that a local health food shop is a supplier. (Does anyone in the UK have any other suggestions?) They are not cheap, especially if I do end up ordering them on-line, and I guess that is where principles can bite. But I know the truth is, if this is a fair and right price to pay, then I have to ask myself what paying less is.
2 comments:
Happy Birthday Gaynor! Sorry don't have anymore advice on the choc chips, I have always just broken up ordinary chocolate - have you heard that Cadburys dairy milk has now gone completely fairtrade? There is still some old stock in the shops but the new stuff displays the 'fairtrade' symbol very appropriately! Enjoy your day x.
Happy, happy birthday to you! May this new year be rich with His surprises and joy! Our birthdays are just days apart--thinking how fun it would be to meet up and share some tea, conversation, and goodies together.:-)
Post a Comment