I miss the paper bags. My mom used paper bags as gift wrap after we coloured on them, we used them as textbook covers for school, we used them a few times each for groceries at the store because they were so strong, we used them for delicate and breakable items when we moved, we used them for bed sheet storage in the linen closet, we used them for wintering seeds in the garage, we used them for old paper storage before recycling that, and when all this finally destroyed the bag, we tossed the bag into our backyard composter.

That bit of paper really went far in my house, and essentially caused no waste.