It’s okay to not give out your old things until you’re ready to let them go.

Recently, my mom found out I had bought a new bra and she wanted my old one. She said she would give it to my aunt but most likely it would go to my cousin. Now, I’m a 26F and my cousin is a 14F. Now, I know what you’re thinking “What’s the difference between a 26 year olds bra and a 14 year olds bra?” Well, for one, I’m a c cup and my cousin is an a cup. I got my first bra when I was 11 and I remember how embarrassed I was wearing my mom’s hand me downs which were too big and too loose for me. The point is that I didn’t want my cousin to have to go through what I did. <br><br>This speaks to a bigger issue that I have noticed in my culture. We have a tendency of passing on old items that we have outgrown or that are in disrepair. For example, I got my mom’s old phone until I turned 18 and bought my own. This is also true for cars. Although, cars make sense. <br><br>I think passing down our old items into disrepair is due to the mentality of not throwing anything out. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve seen kids being forced to finish their meal or they’ll go hungry (this also relates to the culture I come from). This mentality is in part due to the fact that we never know what circumstances await us in the future, so we should try to save as much as we can. <br><br>This mentality bleeds into our material possessions as well. Growing up, I was never allowed to have new clothes. If my older cousins hadn’t already grown out of an item, I was forced to wear it even if it was too small for me until I grew out of it. Also, any time I got new clothes, my mom would take them from me and give them to who ever fit into them until she decided I was grown up enough for them. <br><br>In conclusion, if you have gone through what I have gone through, just know that it’s okay to let go of items that no longer serve you.