UKAY – UKAY
An “all for ₱40” sign hypnotized us to enter that thrift shop when we should have gone straight home. It was no extraordinary thrift shop—the usual hanged clothes and busy people digging something are seen on this thrift shop. But then again, at the back of my mind, I find it time consuming, to find something that we really do not need as of that moment. I mean, why go to a thrift shop to find something that will only add up to the pile of clothes and items that we do not really use? Look, at some point, we used them once, or even twice, who knows? Or we are still planning to use it for the first time or once more. But it all leads back to the sad reality that all of these second hand things we have bought will then become useless for us. And which is better? To just let it rot in one of the corners of your house (or who knows where) or to bring it back to where you have found it and let other people find it and serve its purpose?
But, this is not really the point why I am writing this.
While my friends was getting inside, I preferred staying outside the thrift shop and wait for them. My eyes caught something, nothing much, just a pile of bags laid on the table next to where I was standing. Minutes passed and to not look awkward, swallowed my pride, I tried to look for items that I might be able to use some other days.
I must admit that it was kind of fun looking through stuffs, especially bags. Honestly, I was kind of hoping that I could find something uncertain but will give me the urge to buy it but there was none. All there was were bags with some slight defects but still usable. I picked up this one bag that I was about to buy because it really looks aesthetically pleasing to the eyes compared to the other bags laid there, but then looking closer, I found out that it was rusty and stained. But what else can you do if you really like something? Of course you will think of ways how to fix the defect regardless of its size and hoping that it will actually work out so as you will not end up putting that thing back to where it should be. Otherwise, you are letting other people have it when you could have just picked it up, ignored the defect and own it. Easy! But life, that’s a different story. It’s never going to be like that. In real life, if you will be picking something, you might want to be sure that it is in good condition, right?
And so I gave it up because even though I like that bag to the point that I was about to get some money to pay for it, I put it back down. And so I tried to look for another, maybe there will be another one better than the other and all I have to do is to look for it there right at that moment, while the clock is still ticking. And so I found another, it was not that appealing. At first glance, I saw no defect but when I tried to flip to see the inside, there was a huge hole. The outside of the bag hid how big its defect is. And you know what happened next? I ended up staring blankly at the bag with the worst defect.
Standing within the perimeter of a thrift shop made me see how real life somewhat works. Inside a typical thrift shop, you would see variety of things, some are in good shape but there are also some that are not anymore sellable but are still there, trying to compete with those in good condition and can easily be bought. In reality, we are all just second hand items. What makes us different is our defects. Some of us are just blessed to be picked on first sight, but most of us, we often get rejected, turned down, get checked on but then just like those bags that I have put down, we experienced not being chosen because of our defects no matter how small it is, of what makes us, us. But regardless of what others might think about how damaged we are as an item, we should still put ourselves out there and not lose the patience of being chosen. Defective we might be, there will still be people who are willing to choose us regardless of how major the fixing needs to be.
We should not hide ourselves inside the shelves where nobody can see us just because we are slightly damaged or even if you feel like you are useless and unworthy to find. Do not take away the opportunity to be put out there. At some point, all of us will be chosen and all of those hands that had put us down, will be of less significance once the right one grabs us. In God’s perfect time, since we all have our own timelines, there will be that someone who will be able to uplift the beauty in spite and despite of our hidden and shown damages. Brace yourself to endure a lot of rejections because no matter what item you are, you will still be useful and worth more than any amount to the person who was able to see something different in you.