From what I know, thrift store donations are not common here — I mean, in my part of the world. It's more like an undoable thing to gift out items freely to stores that sell them to make money. Maybe it's practiced in Nigeria, but I haven't seen it in the places I have lived. What's common instead are free-will donations to orphanages or directly to people who need the items.
That being said, I have had so many pauses in my willingness to donate clothing that is no longer useful to me, but I still find it hard to let them go.
Twice last year, I made some trips home, and I had promised a boy in our large extended family that I would bring him some clothing. On the first trip, after I had packed my small bags to embark on the journey, I remembered I wanted to pick out some clothes I hadn't been wearing and take them home as I had promised him. But then, a thought knocked the idea off. What was that thought? The clothes, even though I hadn't been wearing them, were just too hard to let go of because I was deeply connected to them.
"I'll just tell the guy that I forgot if I'm asked." That was my conclusion before I quietly put the clothes back where they belonged and embarked on the journey. Luckily, during the two days I spent at home, I didn't see the guy, and none of my siblings reminded me about it.
On the second trip, I actually wanted to pick the clothes, but I wasn't ready to carry too much luggage. Yeah, that was the silly excuse that won my heart. Unfortunately, I was seen by the guy, and the way he hailed me with so many "bros, bros , bros" titles made me feel guilty. He didn’t ask me about the clothes, though — I just felt within me that I should have brought them for him.
This year, my only trip home happened a few weeks ago. I didn't want difficulty to come into play again, and I didn't want to give excuses the chance to win. So, I packed the clothes into my bag, and you needed to see me with my luggage — as if I was going for a week-long holiday at home, meanwhile, it was just a same-day trip.
When my siblings saw me with my luggage, they were happy, thinking I had come to spend days with them. But when I brought out the clothes and instructed them to give them to the person I had brought them for, their faces changed in dullness because they realized that meant I wouldn’t be staying.
Well, my wardrobe has been spacious since that day, but I won't lie — I still miss the clothes, even though they were just sitting there in my wardrobe and I wasn't going to wear them.
Thanks for reading.
Photos used are mine
Ooops! My day slipped away and I missed posting this on time. It's for the just expired #KISS prompt
