When my friend suggested going to the thrift shop, instantly I thought “I hope no one I know sees me”. It was the same when my cousin commented on my new furniture and Japanese fine-bone-china bowls and asked where I got them. They were from the local thrift shop but instead I said “from the antique shop”.
Many people in my Greek-Cypriot community would despise me if I said I shopped at the thrift shop. They may pity me, consider me poor, a failure. Immigrants sacrificed their families and homes for a better life. Buying a house and having enough money to live comfortably, to educate your children and see them also live comfortably, are a big part of the immigrant dream. But has this dream made us materialistic at the cost of our own planet?
Our love for purchasing the latest trendy clothes or furniture, then donating them when we are tired of them has become normal. I was once like this. But after watching the documentary The True Cost I learned donated clothes that don’t get sold are sent to developing nations, many of them ending up in landfills (垃圾填埋地). In addition, your new dress requires electricity and materials to make. But if you buy a second-hand dress, that’s one less dress in a landfill and one less new dress to be made.
A friend introduced me to the thrift shop only a few years ago. My first item was a dress she gifted me. It was lovely and I loved it. Nobody could tell it was second-hand. This opened me up to purchasing more second-hand high quality branded clothes. Once I dropped in on a friend and was impressed by how she decorated her apartment. “It’s all second-hand.” she said. I couldn’t believe it. The truth is a lot of things sold at the thrift shop are in new or almost new condition. That’s when I made the decision to only buy second—hand things.
Selling second-hand things isn’t anything new but what the planet needs is more buyers. There is so much excess production in the world. So stop feeling ashamed, and let’s get shopping.
【小题1】What does the underlined word “despise” mean in paragraph 2?| A．Think highly of. | B．Look down upon. |
| C．Get away from. | D．Keep up with. |
| A．They want to pursue a high standard of material life. |
| B．They all prefer wearing the latest fancy clothing. |
| C．They think highly of children’s education. |
| D．They get along well with their neighbors. |
| A．The great variety of the goods in the thrift shop. |
| B．The low cost of the goods in the thrift shop. |
| C．The persuasion of the author’s friends. |
| D．The wasted resources of new products and good quality of the thrift shop. |
| A．To introduce a new trend of buying at the thrift shop. |
| B．To persuade more people to buy at the thrift shop. |
| C．To encourage more people to pursue the latest fashion. |
| D．To raise people’s awareness of reasonable shopping. |
