Apr 02 2009
Would You Put Your Child in That?
In these tough economic times many of us will be turning to consignment stores, yard sales, and hand-me downs to clothe our children. Hey, I’ve been doing this since my daughters were born and you can find some great bargains out there. You can also find some things that make you scratch your head and wonder if the giver truly thought about what they were doing.
A few weeks ago my daughters’ preschool teacher told me another mom had six bags of girls clothing she wanted to donate to her church, but then thought of me and wondered if I would want them. Sure. I’m not above hand-me downs and neither are my daughters (at least not yet since they don’t understand the concept of name brands). I finally had a chance to go through the bags and a lot of it made me sad. Out the six bags I filled an entire bag with stuff that simply needed to be tossed. I’m talking non-removable stains, dirt and holes. Small stains I can handle. A quick wash, a little stain remover or bleach and there’s a good chance that tiny stain will be gone. It’s one thing to get rid of your old clothes, it’s another thing to think the recipients will take any ‘ol thing.
Don’t get me wrong. I am very grateful that the person in question thought of my family when going through all these clothes. I still ended up with three bags of clothes for my daughters (two more bags I’m going to donate because there were some things I just didn’t need… and no, I didn’t put the aforementioned stained clothes in there). I just wonder what goes through people’s minds when they’re getting ready to donate items to charity.
I remember when the country rallied to help those affected by Hurriane Katrina. People nationwide were making generous donations of food, money and clothing. Yet I also remember reading that some of the donations were simply ridiculous: evening gowns (because when you lose your home to a hurricane the first thing you need is an evening gown) and used underwear (come on!).
Now is the time to look at your “stuff” and see if you have anything to give. But give wisely and kindly. Are you donating your old clothes because they no longer fit or are out of style? Or are you donating them because they are ruined but you can’t stand the thought of throwing them out? I know I sound harsh… I don’t mean to be. I just ask that when you give, no matter how good the intention, ask yourself if what you’re giving is something that you would want to receive.
