Categories: Environment

How Society Causes You To Change

I just took a bag of clothes which I can no longer wear due to age and put them into the trash.   When I was a little kid, we used to put them into a box and give them to a charity.

When I was older I did the same.

I’d wash them, put them into a bag and carry them to a charity.

My best friend was very wealthy and had a lot of clothes.   She could not wear the same thing to one wedding as she did to another, so might have this dress made, wear it to that wedding, then, to a cocktail party with a different population, and maybe to another function, but then, would give it away.

She gave away a lot of clothing to the Church she belonged to.

One day, she was standing unseen at a rummage sale, for most of her stuff was in perfect condition, and one could buy one of her silk dresses for pocket change.    There were people there, passing remarks about; “old bruk”, (a Jamaican term for second hand things)  and saying how they wouldn’t wear something she had worn in far more offensive language than I am using.

That was the last time she ever gave away her clothes.   She began to burn them in the backyard.

A man who had contacts with a church in America used to get barrels of clothing shipped to his to give to the poor.  The poor didn’t want them.   Why should they have to wear second hand things?   I spoke to a politician who repeated the sentiment.

It was quite shocking to me.   Here were clothes, wearable clothing, good clothing, but the poor didn’t want them.  Considered it near an insult.

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The man had to park his car on the street because his garage was full of these barrels.

I took one and carried it to a particular yard I knew and gave it to them as if I had come to me.   They went through it and found many items that they didn’t know where donated, they thought I had people in America who went shopping to buy things for them.

I told the man; “When you go to work tomorrow, ‘forget’ to lock the garage, leave the grill a little open. People will come and steal the barrels.”

He was uncertain, but did as I asked, so that evening when he came home, he could park in his garage, because all the barrels had been stolen.

This is the level of my society today.

For me to take my clothes to a charity would only result in embarrassment.  Instead, I put them in a plastic bag into the trash.

There are people at the dump who will go through the trash to see if there is anything they can ‘steal’.  This is how it is today.

Instead of giving away my clothes, I toss them into the trash.   If they are taken and dumped into a landfill and not found by the poor, okay.  If they are found, good.

Simply put, I can’t give away my clothing to people who don’t want them.




  • kaylar

    View Comments

    • This is a very interesting piece, considering that we live in a society where we have the rich, the poor and the middle class. Am just shocked at the statement you made that your friend have out some used clothes and people said they could not wear them? Anyway i can't be shocked enough because I know there are people like that in this world. Let me just say this it doesn't mean that if you can't wear them you should make such bad comments. There are people who hope that someone would send them clothing however small but it would be sheer luck if they got clothes that have been worn once. Anyway one thing i know is that second hand clothing is used by just about everyone and to say the truth they are usually far much better and of good quality than some of the clothes that are even sold as new. It's very unfortunate the way society views and takes things for granted. I am one of those people who take the opportunity to bless children's homes, the less fortunate with the stuff or clothing that i don't use, and never have I felt embarrassed about it. People may say all sorts of things but I know I have saved a child from walking naked. It doesn't matter whether the clothes have been worn before or not the issue is you have no clothes and Someone has seen it right to bless You, why not appreciate the gesture it costs you nothing after all. The society needs to change and realize that people are different.

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