Ways to Recycle Our World in Retirement!

I’m 65 years old.  Back in the 50s and 60s, when I was growing up, finances were often tight for my parents.  Even as the oldest sibling, I wore “homemade” clothes or hand-me-downs.  I was lucky enough to have a neighbour with a daughter a little older than me, so when she grew out of things, I got them.

Places like the Salvation Army and Goodwill were there for people who were really needy.  They could get free clothes as needed but gradually others came in and wanted to buy things they saw.  Donations were taken at first but gradually the retail second hand stores became common.

When I first got married, every piece of furniture we owned was a hand-me-down including our bed.  I remember having to put a piece of plywood under the cushion of the couch after we had a good friend get stuck falling through.  Friends went into debt buying a brand new household full of furniture.  We didn’t.  I can’t ever remember my parents buying new furniture either.

When our son was about 3 years old we bought him a “captain’s” bed. We also broke down and purchased a new couch.  A year later, we got our daughter a brand new single bed, which she still had when she moved out years later.  I remember how tiny she looked in the bed!  Waterbeds were all the rage so we had to get one.

 TV sets in our house were always a decade older than the kid’s friends.  When they asked for a colour TV I told them if they watched in black and white, they’d imagine the colour!  Even though they weren’t overly happy with me then, I think they realized years later it was probably a smart move.

The computer age arrived and even the first computers in our house were second hand.  Gradually we felt more affluent and began joining our colleagues by purchasing new electronic devices.  Our household furniture by then consisted of a combination of old and new.

I ended up on my own once more and began spending time in second hand shops and thrift stores.  By then there had been a shift in how consumers were thinking about their purchases.  Old and antique became the new craze.  People who wouldn’t have been caught dead shopping in second hand stores before were joining in to find the bargains.

Recycling of everything, not just clothing and furniture became the norm.  Everyone could use recycling as their way of going green.  Garage sales became common weekend occurrences in each neighbourhood.

The other new craze was clothing consignment stores.  People were going through their closets at home and turning their fashions into coin.  The consignment store owners were very smart.  They created a niche for retro clothing. The younger generation caught on quickly and were wearing the fashions of the 60s and 70s.

There seems to be no let up on the recycling even now, which is good.  Older people on an outing love to spend time digging through the treasures.  Occasionally they will even buy something that reminds them of their earlier life.

Our country is consumer driven and keeps the recycling happening.  The global community is beginning to benefit from our spending too.  Groups, like Gleaners, are supporting people in third world countries by selling second hand furniture locally.  They take the money and use it to run a processing plant to freeze dry surplus vegetables and fruit to send to starving people overseas.  The food is donated by partnering with various Christian organizations around the world.  Gleaners also gather medical equipment like wheelchairs and walkers and doctors groups make sure they get to where they are needed.

So, if you think that you should just throw that piece of furniture in the fire or the garbage maybe stop and think first.  Maybe someone else out there can make use of it!