Trash Bags! What?

The other day, I was out grocery shopping. Moving up and down aisles, I checked items off of my essentials list - those things that I need to survive the week. Vegetables into my basket - some meat - some eggs - yogurt for the early morning breakfasts - down the list I traveled as I moved along the aisles. Ah, the next item - trash bags - I wandered to the cleaning supply aisle.
I am a leisurely shopper, one of those annoying people who discuss all sorts of personal matters with family over the cell phone while grocery shopping. I find it makes my shopping less stressful if I am chuckling with one of my sisters over her child's antics or listening to my young brother talk about the wildlife he's spotted lately. This being the case, I didn't really take the time to ponder the trash bags other than to select the best buy and put it into my basket.
Later, when I was at home, the absurdity of what I had just done struck me. Putting the lavender-scented trash bags away under the kitchen sink, I thought, "Wow! I just bought something that I will only throw away! I spent money so that I could throw even more of my stuff away."
Perhaps our trash bags do hint something about our lifestyle. Growing up, my father was opposed to the idea of trash. He composts as much as he can, saves aluminium cans and glass bottles, and burns all paper products. As a teenager, I was embarrassed by his hatred for waste. I wanted to be normal, not to have to tell people, "That's the burn trash; that's for cans; those carrot peelings go into the compost pail." I wanted, always, to get rid of the stuff that I deemed unnecessary.
Now, though, I'm left pondering. What culture doesn't reuse as much as possible? I must be well-off to even consider throwing away my wilted lettuce or not using a crumpled piece of paper. How many things have worth that I consign to the lavender-scented trash bags? Dad's actions regarding waste are starting to make sense. Dad wasn't motivated by the green movement, his philosophy went deeper than that. It was a philosophy that held that things ought not be wasted. Perhaps, his philosophy was deeply influenced by his mother, who came of age during the great depression and later fed a family of five boys on a minimal budget. She didn't have to worry about throwing things away, the boys had to stay alert to make sure that they got their fair share of food.
Perhaps there is a place for trash bags in the world, but I am now convinced that I ought to ponder what it is. I see no need in being wasteful, just because I can be.