Dr. Bronner's Magic Soap ... Box: a new film
Heard on NPRs weekend edition: Robert Smith interviewing Sara Lamm about her new film, Dr. Bronner's Magic Soapbox which opens in theatres in July. The documentary is about the man who invented the formula for the ubiquitous liquid soap, and whose main goal was to unite all of humankind by distributing the Moral ABC's printed in tiny letters on the soap labels.
Though the style of Emmanuel Bronner's message is a bit on the wacky side, it's always made for entertaining reading ... and when you really think about the essence of his message: that all religions are one and all people are one, it's hard to deny the truth of that -- and how appropriate that is for our world right now.
The film, Magic Soapbox follows Ralph Bronner, Emmanuel Bronner's 68 year old son, as he talks about the legacy his father left behind, and about growing up with a creative genius who was so obsessed with uniting all people on Earth, that he neglected his own family.
"My father was an eccentric -- he did not have a religion - he collected the best of all religions and philosophies put them on a soap label so people could see how much we have in common, and see each other as brothers and sisters, and you don't kill your brother and sister it would have put an end to war - it's as simple as that to put an end to war."
I've used Dr. Bronner's soap since 1972. My tastes in soap "flavors" have changed over the years, as new scents were introduced. It used to come in just peppermint. Now we can get lavender, eucalyptus, peppermint and tea tree soap. Since I buy it in bulk, I can mix the different scents. We use Dr. Bronner's for laundry, shampoo, body soap, hand soap and to dog-soap for Sam.
I love this description of the way the peppermint soap makes you tingle, written in a fan letter to Dr. Bronner's company:
"Dear Dr. Bronner, I want you to know how much I enjoy your peppermint soap. After I shower and dress it feels like someone put a york peppermint patty in my underwear."I wonder if Sam ever feels like he has a peppermint patty stuck in his fur after we give him a bath in Dr. B's???
9 Comments:
LOL! I love this post, because I too am a fan of Dr. Bronner's soap (and his words)! I've been using it since the late nineties, although I've yet to implement it beyond the shower, so thank you for the suggestions!
Oh, and found you through Cate I think...I don't know, I just found myself her one day not too long ago and like your blog name, what it stands for and your musings!
Peace,
Lil
Hi, Maureen. Hello, Sam.
Uuummmmm, you guys smell GOOD!
Hi Lil thanks for your comment. Dr. Bronner's is definitely good for some things beyond the shower. Let me know if you come up with any other uses.
Pepek, lol we do smell good after using the peppermint (or the mixture) but especially Sam - when he gets a bath, he gets lots more hugs and more time on the bed because he smells so good. He hates baths, but I think he knows on some level that it's good for him. heheh.
Me too, me too!!! Dr. Bronner's is lovely - we use it for almost everything, and although Cassie generally dislikes bathing, she does like a bath in Dr. Bronner's lavender (a girl thing methinks). Lovely stuff, isn't it?
How is darling Sam doing?
ah, cate! Sam is doing really well. At the moment ... he kinda stinks. But I still love 'im. to bits. He's much cooler with his summer "do" (clipped down to almost nothing, like a black lab) and getting two walks a day. Still living with gusto. How is Cassie?
I just saw on the news that fires are burning around your place-- I hope not too close! I'd hate for all your beautiful work to go up in flames!
Oooh, I DVR'd this movie (on Sundance Channel, or IFC) but haven't watched the whole thing yet. The piece I did watch was utterly fascinating.
I was just telling hubby the other day about the first time I used Dr. Bronner's. A very conservative Christian friend of mine used it, but the bottle it came in didn't have a label. I just thought it was candy cane soap. It wasn't until I encountered it decades years later in its original container (with all the wacky references to ancient Egyptian birth control) that I realized why my friend's mom removed the label. One whiff of it brought back memories!
P.S. I started brushing my teeth with it, and it's better than toothpaste by far.
pepek, the fires are close to Helena -- relatively (relatively close in Montana means within 10 miles or so) but none of "my" landscapes are in danger. Thank you for asking. I posted a photo of the huge smoke cloud forming over the Meriwether Fire... you might be interested in seeing that. It was absolutely awesome, so huge (!) like photos I have seen of a mushroom cloud. Dispersed in a matter of hours, and now we are back to smoky air. The fire is still burning.
@Shesamazing: good story. Maybe if your friend's mother had actually read the label her mind and heart may have been opened by the message that all religions are one. We are all one ...? or maybe not. Anyway, brushing my teeth w/Dr.B's soap is definitely not something I do. It just tastes like brushing my teeth with soap, LOL. But to each her own, I say. ;-D
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