My Trash is Someone Else's Treasure

I had the pleasure today of donating some craft items to a little family who was thrilled to get them. The mother is raising 3 daughters alone. She had moved away and then came back into town a short while ago. We met about a year or so ago through Freecycle. Freecycle is a group which connects folks who no longer need things with people who need them very much. Check them out at www.freecycle.org

In addition to household items that I knew they could use, I had fun packing lots of crafting supplies. Two years ago, I lost a very dear friend. We were both into crafts of various types. Plus, many people in our mobile home community have donated things to me so I could find "homes" for them. With 3 girls, the oldest a recent high-school grad, I had no doubt that whatever I gave them would surely please at least one of the four females in their apartment.

I was right. When "mom" picked up this evening, she was thrilled and looking forward to working on some projects with her daughters, working on some alone, and looking forward to keeping her girls occupied for a while to come. That last thought alone was enough to make it worth while gathering the things together.

Most crafters run in cycles. This five years we are into one craft. The next five or ten years, another. We try this; we try that. With some crafts, we might try them only once and never again. In the meantime, any craft requires supplies. When we tire of the medium, the supplies sit there. And sit. And sit.

By donating the things I no longer work with, I freed up space and energy for things I am actively doing in the here and now. It was fun.