Wednesday, February 24, 2016

Much More Than Resale

One part of our resale shop, Here We Grow Again, was selling clothes.  It is a business, after all. Another part - an even more important part to me - was giving.  Sometimes giving meant spending time with someone listening or helping them shop.  But sometimes I would have families come in that I knew just couldn’t afford to buy something that they really needed.  Now, wants are one thing. But needs are something different entirely.

The majority of our customers were just thrifty moms like me.  I love to find a bargain.  And with a house full like we have, you can bet your bottom dollar that I am a frugal shopper.  I try to stay within my budget.  And if my bags can still contain name brands and trendy fashions, then I am a hero.

Occasionally, I gave away coats, and hats and pairs of gloves. Sometimes I gave away jeans and shoes. The look on one little girl's face when she watched me put the second pair of pants in the bag even though her mother didn’t have the $6 to pay for them, was absolutely priceless.  She ran around the counter and hugged me, thanking me for giving her an extra pair of jeans so that the other kids didn’t make fun of her. Really?  The peer pressure of a 10 year old in this day and age is hard enough.  It wasn't all that much to me. But no kid should have to worry about that kind of thing.  I was thankful that I could do that.  

Sometimes people would come in to buy things for “adopted” families that needed them. They would read an article in the newspaper or hear of a family through their church and want to help.  It was such a joy to see their faces when I would help them pick out the right sizes and little outfits to match.  Many times I would throw something extra in the bag like socks or a headband.  It was just a bonus from me.

Our friend, Pastor Richard in Jamaica, had an idea for vouchers for a local grocery store. They didn’t want to just give money outright, so instead, they chose to give coupons that the stores would honor. People can go in and use them to purchase what they need up to the value of the voucher.  Bruce and I took that idea to our local food pantries in Muncie.  We distributed a limited number of Here We Give Again vouchers that could be used in our store for clothes, shoes, coats, etc.  Recipients had 30 days to come in to redeem them.  It wasn’t much, but they were always thankful.

One woman who was a retired teacher at a local school would come in often. Because she just loved the kids and wanted to keep busy, she still went back a couple of hours each week to help out.  She came in primarily to buy sweaters for the kids in her class.  She said that the classroom was cold and kids would often come to school without any warm clothes.  At first, she told me, she would ask the kids to leave the sweaters on the back of their chairs for the next day.  Until she learned that some of these kids had brothers or sisters that didn’t have sweaters or jackets on either.  This sweet woman would let the kids from her class take the clothes home to give to their siblings, and she would just provide another one the next week at school.  Each time she would come in, we would go around and clean off the racks together.  She paid for the clothes that she bought, but I would give her the "grandma discount".  She told me once that she would take snacks in and give kids the extras at the end of the day to take home.  Many of the kids in her class wouldn't eat until they came back to school the next day. Oh, I can hardly stand the heartbreak. Right here in our own back yard. Bravo, sweet teacher, for seeing a need that you can help meet.

I had one young dad in particular who would come in every couple of weeks with his young son and daughter.  Each time he had on exactly the same stained shirt, ripped jacket and dirty pants.  His kids had dirty faces, and their clothes were much too small.  I could just see the gentleness and love in his eyes when he would look at them.  He was obviously embarrassed and terribly shy.  He would hardly talk to me.  Rarely, if ever would he buy anything.  But he was always so polite.  I often wondered what his back story was.  You know, how did he get to the place where he was in life right now?

One afternoon, he came in by himself.  He would often do that, just kind of scope the place out.  So, I asked him a few questions to try to get him to open up.  He barely made eye contact with me, mostly just looking at the floor.  With some coaxing, he told me that he was divorced and didn’t really have a place to live.  He just kept going from place to place every so often.  He did have some kind of job, but it didn’t pay enough for him to support himself and pay his child support, too. He said that it was more important to him that he took care of his kids than himself.  He was trying to turn his situation around, but it wasn’t something that could happen over night.  He got to see his kids for a few hours every other weekend and desperately wanted to provide for them and make their short time together special.  So, he would bring them in to our little store to try to get them something that they both needed and wanted.  Bless his heart.  

The next time he brought those kids in, I let them pick out a few things that they wanted and made them try the clothes on and model them for me. I picked out what fit them best, found things that matched, and would maybe last the longest.  Then I took them over to the books and toys and helped them pick some things out.  I filled their bags up with clothes and toys and shoes.  I told the kids to come behind the counter with me and gave them some snacks and candy that I had back there for myself.  I could tell that all the attention made them feel really special.

Then I gave the father all the cash that I had in my wallet; probably about $5.  When I pressed it into his hand, he had tears in his eyes. You would have thought that it was a fortune.  “Thank you”, he whispered.  And I knew that he was thanking me for more than that little bit of money.  When they left the store, I went in to the back room, closed the door, and cried.

Honestly, it wasn’t that much.  Just a few things really.  The profit would have been maybe $10.  And that little bit of cash from my purse I would never miss.  But maybe that dad could get his kids some french fries or ice cream that night. Maybe they could share some laughs and make a memory.

The look on that father’s face taught me a lesson that has stayed with me.  Big or small, don’t take for granted the blessings that you have.  He was thankful for what he had - that time to spend with his kids.  And I was thankful for the little bit that I could help him with, too.

Don't worry that your gift is too small or insignificant to make a difference.  Start where you are. And do what you can.

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