treasure-hunter

i’ve got a new hobby:
treasure hunting at the flea market!



i’ve been going after daddy-daughter-time
for the past few weeks.
first i pay my quarter to get in,
i pass by the live band
playing music
that you would hear on spanish radio-
then i pass by the farmers selling the fruits
and vegetables and nuts-
and then i just browse.

there are lots of old tools,
clothes, furniture, VHS tapes,
video games, stuffed animals,
but what i’m after is toys!

janie has this doll house-
and there are lots of
different sets of people that live in it-
ariel lives in it, with eric and her friends,
winnie the pooh lives in it
with his friends from the hundred acre wood-
mary poppins lives there,
mickey mouse lives there with his friends
donald and goofy and pluto-
polly pocket and her friends live there-
and so does elmo
and his friends from sesame street!
it’s a pretty crowded place,
but they all seem to work it out.

all of those toys can be found at the flea market!

there are these really, really big bins there-
full to the brim with little toys:
old happy meal toys,
old souvenirs,
and pieces of bigger sets.
and i spend all kinds of time
digging through those bins.
i transfer the toys from one bin to the next
so i can see each and every toy.
its hot under the sun-
i get sweaty, and about 90% of it is junk-
but then there is that 10% that is priceless.
when i find it, i try to keep my cool,
so the price stays down.
for every bin i look through,
i find only 3 or 4 toys that i want-
but those toys are perfect for the dollhouse,
and they would cost me a fortune on e-bay.
when i find that rare toy,
endorphins shoot through my brain
i want to just hold it up and admire it.

i show the handful to the seller and they say
“eh- a dollar.”
music to my ears!

yesterday i found a bunch of trains for jane’s trainset.
5 trains for a dollar-
i took them home, sanitized them,
and she hasn’t stopped playing with them since!
i’m thinking about starting an e-bay business
and becoming some kind of part-time
treasure hunter-
and not just for the money-
for the thrill!

the bible talks about treasure hunters-
proverbs 2 starts out by saying:
“my son, if you accept my words
and store up my commands within you,
turning your ear to wisdom
and applying your heart to understanding,
and if you call out for insight
and cry aloud for understanding,
and if you look for it as for silver
and search for it as for hidden treasure,
then you will understand the fear of the LORD
and find the knowledge of God.”

what a challenge!
to search for wisdom-
like i search for those toys-
to dig for it,
hunt for it,
sweat for it,
sacrifice for it,
and cherish it once its found.
sounds like i need to step up my game
and intensify my search.

he ends that passage with the promise-
if i search for wisdom,
like i search for a treasure,
i will find it:
“the knowledge of God.”

cool-

happy hunting!