‘Disposable plates make me a nicer mother’

It was a normal hour of shopping when Annie’s eyes suddenly fell on the contents of the shopping cart in front of her. ‘In the cart were not only typical mother groceries such as yoghurt, granola and apples, but above all: a gigantic amount of disposable cardboard plates.’

A shop assistant asked the owner of the cart if she was throwing a party. ‘No,’ he replied, ‘I just use them for my family, so that I have more time for them.’ A huge one for Annie eye opener, she says. ‘On my next supermarket visit, I decided to do the same; I bought paper plates instead of dishwasher tablets.’ That evening, after dinner, she threw her family’s emptied crockery into the trash and went outside to play with her children.

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Step back

The disposable plates are just a metaphor, writes Annie. “They remind me that some things are more important than others. What does it matter if my house is clean, if I still walk in my sportswear or what crockery my family eats from; as long as I have time for my children.’ She shared her life hack on Facebook, and was inundated with comments. Mostly from moms who think it’s the hack of the century, but some also posted a critical note. For example, one mother is worried about the mountain of waste that her life hack causes.

In the meantime, Annie continues unperturbed by stocking up on disposable tableware: ‘It’s mainly about taking a step back in my hectic life as a mother, and making time to enjoy the beautiful moments. And create memories. Because that’s what it’s about, isn’t it?’

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