another man's treasure

In the U.S., it can be difficult or expensive to repair things. Some might say that the economy is based on a "disposable" mindset. In contrast, here in the Philippines, it can be very economical to repair a broken or damaged item.

a repaired plastic lawn chair, stitched together with plastic string

In many cases, you don't even need to take your broken item to a repair shop; the repairman will make house calls.
People are very creative in how they repair and in how they reuse things. Very little is wasted or discarded. We wish we had photos of all the recycled things we've seen in use!

These sturdy market baskets are made from recycled nylon string which is made from recycled plastic bags.

Coconut shells are dried and used for charcoal.

This woman below has collected sticks in an empty lot to sell as fuel for cooking fires.

We saw a tortoise shell used to form the body of a beautiful guitar-like instrument.

And we saw a young blind man agilely repair his broken guitar string re-using the broken string. He'd obviously done it before.
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Below are just a few of the hundreds of men and boys who pedal carts around the city in search of recyclables. One man's trash is another man's treasure. They call out in loud voices as they pass to let us know what they are collecting. They are happy to take our cardboard, plastics, tin cans, and packing materials.
There are so many, they pass by many times each hour.

notice the seat on the vehicle above - made from a recycled office chair!

God's way is similar, isn't it?

"Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come."
-2 Corinthians 5:17

He's in the business of redeeming what may seem, in the eyes of others, poor and useless.
Thanks be to God!