Day 34-- Helping after school and donating used games

"It's possible to own too much. A man with one watch knows what time it is while a man with two watches is never quite sure."
---Lee Segall

Yesterday I saw an email posting on the school listserv about a request for used games to be donated for indoor recess. So I used this opportunity to go through our many games with my daughter Amanda and pick out ones that we never or rarely use. As it turned out, there were a bunch, and together we agreed that I would bring them to school and place them in the box by the office.

It was a teachable moment for Amanda to sort through the games. I was really proud of her for so readily realizing that she didn't need to keep them all when she was barely using them. I have noticed her becoming more giving lately, and I hope it's in part due to this project. Like other kids her age, she loves to mimic what her parents do.

It was also a good feeling for me to go through and clean out our games cabinet. Truly there is such a thing as having too much of almost anything, and games/toys certainly are no exception. I had kept games from years ago, thinking maybe we'd use them but mostly just not taking the time to sort through them. Thus today was not only about giving, but also about de-cluttering, a highly undervalued activity!

I also helped for a few minutes at Sign Language Club, while waiting for the wonderful teacher to come. I would never have thought of going out and signing my daughter up for this, but given that it's right at the school with such a great teacher I couldn't resist. And with my daughter (and from what I can see with the other kids), it's a big hit!