A Bizarre "Bazar" at TaFong Elementary School

Shopping is fun especially when your pocket is full and you have enough free time to kill. Since little I had been taught to cultivate the merit of saving for a rainy day and not to squander. Yet often times, the impulse rooted deeply inside me would emerge and get out of hand especially after I strived to oppress it long. I would always feel guilty afterward and not to set foot in any store.

A “Bazaar” held at DaFong Elementary School? Why not? I thought when Sherry released the news to me. It's the school's special program to attract donations from the community to help those students whose families are either facing difficuties or suffering from the economical downturn. Though I should do some chores at home, I decided to have a little bit fun. My pocket would be surely safe. This school bazaar wouldn’t empty my pocket as there wouldn’t be any apparels or fancy stuff to allure me. Still it will be fun just by enjoying browsing a lot of interesting gadgets. So there I went.

We set 10:30 am to meet at the school gate. What I got from Sherry was DaFong Elementary School. What's its exact Chinese name? There would be a lot of combinations of Chinese words with the same pronunciation. No problem, internet makes information sourcing extremely easy. To find it out was just a click away. Before getting ready to leave home, I sent Sherry a mail asking her to have her cell phone on in case. But "Where is my cell phone?" I looked for it everywhere, yet couldn't find it. Well, maybe nothing wrong will happen. So I was on my way. After checking with two pedestrians, I was in front of the gate. Five minutes to 10:30 pm. Perfect! She will be here any minute. But I was still anxious being afraid of missing her because I didn't have a phone should anything go wrong. I looked around standing on my toes. It was a big relief when catching the sight of her. I gasped with a big surprise when Sherry told me the School gate is on the other side. Where I stood was just a rear door. Mama Mia! If Sherry didn't come this way, the result would be unthinkable! How lucky I was!

There were a lot of stands selling children's items mostly. What do you expect? It's a school Bazarre. Nevertheless, a few stands sold some bags, clothes, or houseware suitable for women or housewives. Of course I have seen school's bazarre many times. My school would have a "Bazarre", too to go with some special events. But not in such a big scale. At first Sherry and I tried to stick together. I got two middle-size travelling bags while Sherry was interested in some fashion bags/pulses. Soon, we lost sight of each other while I was busy in look at the stuffed toys. They were on sale at amazingly low price. They must have costed the original owners' parents a fortune to buy them. Now either for supporting the activity or getting rid of white elephants, the students put their once-adored toys out here for sale. I love to collect stuffed toys for my students. I tried to look for her. Hard to believe that she, such a tall lady, could hid herself so well in the crowd. "No problem, go to the Information Center to ask helpers there to broadcast her name for me," I was proud of my brilliant idea. After three times broadcast, and 15 minutes' waiting, still no sight of her! She was crazier than me that even the loud broadcast couldn't get into her ears. I left a message at the Center, back to the stands to try my luck while keeping on my exploration. When the Bazarre was about to over, the sale went crazier. The merchandise were sold worthless. Well, I was sensible enough not to be tempted by it though I could buy several times of the things with the money I just spent.

There finally I saw Sherry probably because the crowed was gone. We examined each other's trophies, had some refreshments, and had last look of the school carnival before leaving. Look at the stuffed toys I bought! I will bring them to my classroom and use them as prizes for my students. Spending such little money to make my students happy is definitely worth all the time.

Trini

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