I learned a very valuable lesson this week.
When you go to yard sales, don’t trust those other bargain hunters.
I recently began a new hobby of buying stuff, anything from collectables to old items, and seeing if I can re-sell them later. My rule of thumb is anything I can buy cheap, I will consider it.
I stopped by a yard sale on my way to work recently and people were out early. This particular yard sale actually had some things I was interested in, so I started picking up some items. A couple of the things were bulky, so I started my own stack away from the items being sold. Several other people did the same thing.
One woman even asked another if a certain pile was hers. She didn’t want to get something that had been claimed. That was a neat gesture.
Finally, I gathered all my treasures (my wife would call it junk) and went to the lady in charge to purchase. As we were going through my stuff, I realized, to my chagrin, that one of the items I had put in my pile had mysteriously disappeared.
I have always heard that all is fair in love and war. I guess now we have to add yard sales to that list.
November 4, 2011 at 6:00 pm |
Dear Lonnie: I remember the early morning “Black Friday” sales my family would be involved with when I was an RA Councilor. We would get up at 3:00AM and run down to Wal Mart to procure bikes for our NBA Toy Store donation in inner city Nashville. The crowds, the attitudes were amazing. Fights, brawls, ill attitudes prevailed as people hunted for bargains. Many times, my daughter and sons watched, as Cathy and I would “hand over’ a bike to someone who came late and had a child to buy for for Christmas, but they were all gone. As we modeled kindness and mercy to our children, the Lord always blessed us, providing more bikes at a different store. When I look back now, I was truly blessed by showing my kids that no matter what situation, God wishes us to choose carefully while in the world, never losing sight of His way of doing things. A bargain ill got is never a bargain when we will face God one day! Blessings Lonnie, good luck at your next yard sale! Russ