- Martha Engeman
Not The Toilet Paper Again

Recently a friend informed me that people are starting to hoard toilet paper again. I just groaned and said, “Not again.” Sure enough, when I went to the grocery store, most carts had more than one package of toilet paper. Memories of last spring when you could not find toilet paper if your life depended on it came flooding back and with that a sense of dread.
Lockdown 1.0 was new and unexpected. I learned how to move my business online, found my Zoom lifeline and tackled lots of those household projects that hadn’t been done.
The thought of lockdown 2.0, should we have to do that, just makes me want to scream or pull the blankets over my head and hibernate.
Besides, someday those house projects will actually be finished, and then what?
Back to the toilet paper. Here’s the thing—if we all just buy what we really need, there will be enough to go around. But if we hoard, some will be left out. And while we can definitely go without some things, everyone needs toilet paper.
Of course there are people who are more vulnerable, those who are sick or the elderly, who may need to have some extra in hand. But most of us will be ok.
So y’all, can we just take a deep breath and resist the urge to get just a little more? Can we lean into our discomfort and trust that we really will be ok?
And I swear to God, after 2020, I will never take toilet paper for granted again.