Spotlight: Mission Thrift

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Hello again my beloveds! In addition to witnessing both a spectacular sunrise and delightful sunset (on the same day even!) this week, we had the unique experience of seeing the behind the scenes workings of our local thrift store. Now — ya’ll know I love a good thrift store find — so I was more than happy to sacrifice my one and only sleep in day to volunteer at our local thrift store.

The hubby and I have been looking for ways to get involved in our community and “get connected” since we moved, so when we heard our new church had made a connection with the Mission Thrift Store in town, the hubby declared: “Oh no… thrift store?! I guess we are going on Saturday morning?” He knows me well. Being the new kids on the block, we arrived at the front door to the store (of course, I knew where it was!) locked and sealed. As I chased the hubby around the back, trying to keep up with his faster-than-most-normal-people pace. We were greeted by two other volunteers from our local church and a host of others ready for the shift.

Our Local Mission Thrift store Photo via missionthrift.com

This particular location is quite large, occupying about three storefronts with numerous donations arriving in a steady stream of boxes and black garbage bags. We learned that donations are becoming harder and harder to sort out. The stores have to be very particular. Few electronics, safety checks, non smoker donations only, dirty or soiled or too much of a good thing isn’t accepted at the door. Once inside, the goods are piled high in bins, bags, shelving units, boxes, racks and whatever other nook and cranny you can find. The goods were everywhere!

The hubby’s muscles were put to work in sorting drop offs, and I went to clothing (which was a good thing because housewares are a weakness!). Clothes are sorted and re-sorted for quality control, sizing, pricing and whether or not the item is seasonal. Nothing is wasted, but not all your donations can be used. Our consumer society has made an abundance of “waste” and I am reminded again of how much “stuff” we really have. Even with the bulk of thrift stores and donation centres we have around us, there simply is too much stuff — and so the staff have to be picky. Many textiles are sent off to be recycled, which I suppose is still better than ending up in the landfill, but it did make me think about what I put in my own donation boxes.

If you look up the Mission Thrift store website, you’ll discover that most of its stores are volunteer driven. We met several on Saturday, including a young man doing his community hours and a few grey haired ladies filling in their free time meeting and greeting. Apparently, there is one lady whose sole job was washing dishes. I hope my hubby didn’t add to her duties, because I discovered him chit-chatting in the break room on more than one tour through! Think of her, next time you see that shining display of teacups on the shelf!!

Photo via Ludmila Schnaider

Our time there was all too short, but I wanted to give you a little spotlight on this Canadian company and its roots. Unlike similar thrift stores, Mission thrift is not for profit. According to their website:

“100% of Mission Thrift’s net proceeds go to support the joint ministries of BFM Foundation Canada and Bible League Canada. The funds are used to support our local community and provide programs that encourage literacy, empower women and provide a safe place for children to learn and grow.”

missionthriftstore.com

And so my muse this week has my mind muddled with contradictions… on one hand I am reminded of how much we are blessed. The hoarded back rooms gave me an all too clear reality check of things. Things we don’t need, things we crave and fall out of fashion or style and then are no longer worthy of our keeping. Having said that, we went home with several items we snatched up before they even hit the shelves. Are we hypocrites or good and frugal thrifters? The other thought is volunteering. Do we do it enough? We were told the store is struggling to find people (especially of the next generation) who are willing to give of their time. Have we not been called to serve? Are we too busy? Have we taught our children the benefits of working without pay? Much to contemplate.

I am considering going back — to help, I mean. Since I have been granted this season of unemployment since moving, I seem to have time on my hands at the moment. There are only so many boxes one can organize at home. Perhaps I can sort somebody else’s junk for a change. Even if I don’t get a chance to volunteer, my money will support their charity for sure! Even if it is just to appreciate some super clean tea cups lovingly washed by hand.

Treasures and Time

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Greetings, my beloveds! Another week… thought I’d shake it up a bit and post a day late. Truth is, we had our first power outage last night and no posting was going to get done without power. The winds blew something fierce and we got a bit of freezing rain and then, poof! darkness fell upon the land. Thankful for our wood stove and the hubby’s persistence in purchasing wood, we survived the five or so hours of “living like pioneers”. Minus the data on our phones, and the battery operated flashlights, and the printed card game we played…

Would you like to live like a Pioneer? Photo by dogadakisakal on Pexels.com

I suppose the blackout added to my muse for today, which was prompted by a question I saw posed a week or so ago: What would be an era you would have liked to live in? Take a moment with me. Live in forever? Visit? Future? Past? I suppose the scenario may change if you were stuck there versus time travelling through… so let’s say we were just visiting. I’m hearing many of my generation and the next saying “Oh, if only we could go back to the good old days — live off the land, no pressures, no this or that” Which seems fair coming from a girl who just moved to the country to raise chickens and bunnies and learn to grow her own veggies. Still, there’s a never ending amount of work involved with those things… and no Home Hardware to help in 1800.

Perhaps some of you would say Bible Times would be the ticket. Meet Jesus and the disciples. Get a true feeling for the scriptures and the parables as a people of the time. Still, as a young woman, my life would look very very different. Perhaps my stubborn attitude would’ve gotten me into trouble. Jesus or not. Or swing the pendulum. Future? Automated everything. Convenience extrapolated to the max. What kind of satisfaction, or lack thereof, would that elicit? All fair assessments, and worthy of musing.

Where would you go if you could time travel?

A week or so ago we made an impromptu visit to an old friend who is now living in an old century home in a quaint little town not too far from us. Her place is fabulous! Perfectly accented with antiques and knick knacks that truly bring her showcase home to full beauty. I craved her secrets and sources, and kicked myself for being the realist I am, and that I am entirely too cheap. Besides, our century farmhouse has to be knocked down a notch due to dog hair, house flies and the manure patch next door. Pioneer times, my foot.

Still, I am taken in by things that various people treasure. I marvel at home reno shows and thrift finders who have a gift for finding that perfect thing. That little gem that fits exactly on that shelf and screams I am the G.O.A.T! Perhaps, you’ve DIY’d something or inherited a family heirloom that you display with pride. I found a little egg cup at the thrift store the other day that did me in. Normally, I gloss over the knick knack section (“frugal” remember?) but I picked up this little thing and hummed and hawed at the price tag (a whopping $1.98!) and decided it was too cute. Chickens. Farmhouse. Maybe even bordering on “vintage” … a farmhouse needs a chicken egg cup, right??

And so I enjoyed my hard boiled egg in my new egg cup on Saturday morning. And dream of chickens come spring.

“Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”

Matthew 6:19-21

Does this mean we cannot collect the goods and find that perfect piece? I don’t think so. It’s a good reminder to stay balanced. To live with Heaven in mind. To treasure our relationships and nurture our love for others not things. I can easily get sucked in to the beauty of “things” (or creatures…) instead of my people, so I must check myself every now and then. A good power failure reminds me that all that I have right now, in this era in history, in this moment in time, was designed perfectly just for me. I am given what I need and blessed with so much more. And so, although it is fun to dream and ponder and muse about this time or that treasure, reality tells me that you can’t take it with you. Be grateful and generous. Be thankful and thoughtful. But dream a little.

Persistent

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Persistence. It’s what I’ve been musing about today. The thought popped into my head as I sat watching a lone ladybug crawl up my windowsill this morning. Golly, these insects are persistent, I thought to myself! This morning we had our first dusting of snow. It’s the end of October, and the weather has been exceptionally warm up until today. We are finally getting the seasonal temperatures we expect. Which means the bugs should be dying off. Except they are not. Persistent.

I suppose I need to back track a little. Mornings are entirely too early here on “Itsnotta” farm. The youngest now has to be up and ready for the school bus by 7:10 AM. For us, that’s an early wake up call. And, the baby of the house is like her momma… mornings are not our best time of day.

Photo by Acharaporn Kamornboonyarush on Pexels.com

I’m trying. We set our alarm early enough to snooze a little before crawling out from the warmth in order to get the last teenager surviving up in time to catch the bus. Who decided high school should start at 8:15 anyway??!

I tried gentle parenting with no lights on and warm thoughts and kind words. It didn’t work. The hubby now gets up, flicks on every light in the house and we both do a lot of shouting. We pack everything the night before but the kid still manages to not eat breakfast. In fact, she’s barely dressed as we haul her out, shoes in hand, so as not to miss the bus.

All of this to tell you of my encounter with the lady bug. After the chaos of the morning routine, I have been sitting staring out the front window, still in jammies, warm coffee in hand, tucked under some sort of covering, thankful another day has started and wishing the sun to rise. Depending on the amount of shouting and, shall we say, non-gentle parenting that has happened, this quiet moment of solitude plummets me down into a deep hole of thoughts – sometimes good, sometimes not so good.

As I watched the ladybug, I flashed back to the day they invaded. Swarms of them. I hear they are not true ladybugs but some invasive species of Asian beetle who have these seasons of literally taking over. They were everywhere! All along the front porch outside, on every door frame and crawling up the ceiling in a mass swarm of orangey red waves. Bleck! Trusty Google told us not to squish ’em as they emit some sort of nasty stink, so we vacuumed them up in our ancient vacuum – which also emits a nasty stink – so not sure we were one ahead of the game anyway. At least the bugs were gone from inside the house. Except for these few persistent ones.

The houseflies are still here too. I can’t seem to get them under control, either. Occasionally, on a warmer day, a lone wasp still pays us a visit on the sunny porch. My spiders are no where to be seen. Luckily for the hubby, neither are the mosquitoes. Here I am panicking that the rabbits are warm enough and the blessed bugs are still surviving! Persistence.

So, as I muse about the eternally present insects, I think about persistence. Perseverance. The tenacity and determination to keep moving forward. To stay alive, even, when all other circumstances say you should give up – and just die off. Many of us have heard stories of the athlete or business entrepreneur who musters up enough gumption to continue to survive rejection after rejection. I think there are certainly those extreme cases of climbing the mountain to the top, but it seems like most of us ride the wave of persistence daily. At least I do.

We start out every early morning with big plans to be consistent, pray continually, seek grace and gratitude. Be thankful and look for kingdom opportunities. Often we manage to do all those things… for awhile. Then one too many early mornings take hold of us and we are too tired to fight. Or cutting words from someone else makes it super hard to treat them with grace and honour. It’s hard to be grateful when doubt and worry weasel their way into our thoughts as we balance the cheque book, or make another visit to the clinic or counsellor.

Ephesians 6 is one of my favourite chapters in the sense that it reminds us that spiritual growth is a journey of continually getting ready and getting dressed for battle. It reminds us to be persistent in our prayers. To stand your ground in battle and have an attitude of obedience. The apostle Paul knew the battle was difficult, but like my little ladybug he continued to climb heavenward even in the face of death. He knew the battle was worth it.

Photo by Dastan Khdir on Pexels.com

To be honest, I struggle with it. I pray, I write, I read, I study. Yet, circumstances and my own stubborn attitude prevents me from being the gracious daughter of the King He’s asked me to be. Some days I physically don’t have it in me. No one said the journey would be roses and rainbows. In fact, Ephesians 6 reminds us it’s a BATTLE. Oh beloveds, be encouraged that battles are not fought all alone. It takes an army. And each one of us have to put on our suits of armor and stand our ground. Shall we march heavenward together? I’ll see you next week!