Passing on the Stuff (revised)

Sometimes we have stuff we just know someone else we know would really love to have. We just can't quite put our finger on WHO that someone might be.

Like the time I finally realized my kids had really, truly outgrown the miles and miles of Thomas the Tank Engine track, and the two HUGE storage tubs of Thomas trains... I was saving them, in my lack-of-storage space in the garage, "for my grandchildren." It occurred to me that grandchildren are a loooooonnnnnngggggg way off for me, and I really needed that space for other things and at the time, we knew about 10 5-year-olds who were at the perfect Thomas age. Sure enough, our boxes and bins were received with smiles by one family who used them for a while and then passed them on to another family.

A few years ago, when we realized the Beanie Baby collection was overflowing the closets, and the boys who had once loved and played with the various bears, kitties, and birds were pretty much done with all of them except for a prized few, we took two laundry baskets full of Beanie Babies to our local fire station. The firefighters were delighted (they take them on calls where there might be children who need comfort). They did say that they can only use a few at a time, so not to assume they are the stuffed animal drop-off site every time we're cleaning a closet.

I could have put the toys on eBay, or craigslist, or schlepped them off to Value Village, but it makes me happy to know the toys my children and I loved to play with are making someone else smile. The connection was part of the equation.

So here's my thought-at least as it applies to my family. If we get a call from "the truck," we always schedule a donation. If we have kid stuff that is nice enough that I would love to give it away to a friend, I'll take the time to ask around. If it's broken, stained, or ruined in some other way, I throw it out, with a sigh and an apology to the universe for falling prey to the virus of overconsumption.