The Joy of Hand-Me-Downs

Black plastic trash bags, old cardboard boxes, these packages of promise would arrive, usually during the summer, from distant cousins who were finally near on a much-anticipated vacation. “We brought Catherine some hand-me-downs. Take what you need!”

When I overheard these words exchanged between two coffee-cup holding adults, my juvenile heart would leap. Clothes. NEW clothes! You see, I never perceived we were poor or did without growing up (except that time some friends of my mom sent her home with bags of food). I always felt taken care of, though going clothes shopping at a retail store was a rarity. That was only for special occasions, or shoes. Good Lord, shoes. I think I was in a size 11 by sixth grade. (I’m now a 12.)

Back to those bags and boxes. The glorious bags and boxes. I would sprawl my then-bony legs out on the carpet, and dive in. The smell of faraway, suburban homes would hit my nose before the sight of shirts, shorts, skirts, dresses and other apparel would hit my eyes. I can almost remember the distinct smell of each of my cousin’s homes. I had nineteen first cousins, but only a few girls who were four or five years older than me. The perfect hand-me-down age gap.

So yesterday, when my daughter was the recipient of two HUGE boxes of hand-me-downs (from a friend, not a cousin), my heart was filled with joy for her. She’s benefited from this friend’s generosity since she was a baby, and I am immensely grateful. Not only has this saved us HUNDREDS of dollars over the years, but I got to see that same excitement on my daughter’s face last night that I used to experience. She spent probably an hour sorting through the items, and would run deliriously to find me when she came across a frilly dress, her favorite. She played dress up to her heart’s content, pulling fabric of bright yellow, deep purple, faded blue and velvet black over her tousled hair. “Look at THIS one mommy! Don’t I look beautiful? I LOVE all of this!”

I explained to her that this was all a gift, and that the money we didn’t have to spend on clothes could go toward more important things, like paying bills, or more fun things, like saving up for Disney World. The joy of hand-me-downs should be experienced by every child. The thrill of the unknown. The delight of a found treasure. The acceptance of generosity. And the desire to pay it forward someday. And maybe someday, when she’s a little older, she’ll get to experience the overwhelming excitement of a bag of hand-me-down toys, like the entire trash bag full of BARBIES I got one year. Now THAT was awesome.