1 . When my friend suggested going to the op shop (二手商店)，instantly I thought “I hope no one I know sees me”. It was the same when my cousin commented on my new furniture and Japanese, fine-bone-china bowls and asked where I got them. They were from the local op shop but instead I said “from the antique shop”.

Many people in my Greek-Cypriot community would look down on me if I said I shopped at the op shop. They may pity me, consider me poor, a failure. Immigrants sacrificed their families and homes for a better life. Buying a house and having enough money to live comfortably, to educate your children and see them also live comfortably, are a big part of the immigrant dream, But has this dream made us materialistic at the cost of our own planet?

Our love for purchasing the latest trendy clothes or furniture, then donating them when we are tired of them has become normal. I was once like this. But after watching the documentary The True Cost I learned donated clothes that don’t get sold are sent to developing nations, many of them ending up in landfills (垃圾填埋地). In addition, your new dress requires electricity and materials to make. But if you buy a second-hand dress, that’s one less dress in a landfill and one less new dress to be made.

A friend introduced me to op shopping only a few years ago. My first item was a dress she gifted me. It was lovely and I loved it. Nobody could tell it was second-hand. This opened me up to purchasing more second-hand high quality branded clothes. Once I visited a friend and was impressed by how she decorated her apartment. “It’s all second-hand,” she said. I couldn’t believe it. The truth is a lot of things sold at the op shop are in new or almost new condition. That’s when I made the decision to only buy second-hand things.

Selling second-hand things isn’t anything new but what the planet needs is more buyers. There is so much excess (过量) production in the world. So stop feeling ashamed, and let’s get shopping.

1. What kind of feeling is expressed in Paragraph 1?

A．Pride.

B．Embarrassment.

C．Delight.

D．Sympathy.

2. What are many people in the author’s community like?

A．They are probably materialistic.

B．They care about the environment.

C．They think highly of op shopping.

D．They look down upon immigrants.

3. What was the author encouraged to do after visiting her friend’s apartment?

A．Watch the documentary The True Cost.

B．Donate more to local charities.

C．Avoid shopping too much.

D．Stop buying new things.

4. What’s the purpose of the text?

A．To entertain.

B．To advertise.

C．To persuade.

D．To describe.