Earlier this month, my dad surprised me with a graduation gift. He bought me a new smartphone: the iPhone 6. Many recent college graduates would be ecstatic if gifted this phone. Some might even beg for it. Initially, I didn’t know how to react. I felt grateful for receiving a lavish present. I was excited to explore the new model’s features, such as the high quality camera. Perhaps, this could finally revive my interest in photography, I thought. However, I felt guilty for indulging in consumerist culture.

Allow me to add background to the scene. I recently returned from a semester abroad in India. The curriculum oriented around sustainability. My classmates and I visited organic farms. Our class lectures discussed sustainable development, appropriate technology, and globalization. We stayed at a Earth spiritual ashram that holds an annual conference on sustainability. We watched Bag It, an investigative documentary about the harmful effects of the plastic industry. We learned about disposable culture.

When I first returned home, things were weird to say the least. I forgot how to use self-check out lines at the grocery store. I was surprised to find toilet paper in a public restroom. I preferred squat toilettes to Western ones. I still experience hints of reverse culture shock. Particularly, I struggle the most with disposable culture, or the “throwaway” habits of consumerism. I didn’t want to fall into disposable habits I started “un-learning” in India.

We see painfully apparent disposable culture whenever Apple releases a new iPhone model. The tech industry glamorizes new devices as tiny pieces of the future. Gleeful customers line up for a new smartphone nationwide, regardless of whether or not they actually “need” a new phone. It’s a spectacle that makes it on the news every year. Where do all of these unused — and otherwise, totally functioning — phones go, anyway? Although it’s possible to sell an older edition of an iPhone, often these phones end up collecting dust in desk drawers or a pile of e-waste in Asia.

While head over heels with my new iPhone 6, complete with a fingerprint identity sensor built into the Home button, I was stuck with an older version of an Apple product. My iPhone 4 was frustratingly slow, and applications frequently crashed on it. It couldn’t hold a charge for more than half a day. The device reached its prime peak over two years ago. However, it still had the basic functions of a smartphone. It could receive and dial calls, in addition to receiving and sending text messages. The camera and music functions were also perfectly fine. I didn’t “need” a new smartphone.

There I was, with two iPhone models in my possession. I practiced disposable culture first-hand. A few weeks earlier, I may have been disgusted with myself. I even reconsidered a data plan and instead, daydreamed about returning to a flip-phone. A dumbphone. I romanticized the life without app notifications, when your phone rang just for a phone call or incoming text message. Also, if I didn’t put the effort into recycling my iPhone 4 properly, it could end up as e-waste. In India. My otherwise functioning smartphone could potentially end up where I’d spent the first three and a half months of the year. I was not okay with this.

I brainstormed a few alternatives. I could a) sell it, b) donate it to a charity, where someone possibly end up selling it anyway, or c) ask Reddit. The list of possibilities could’ve gone on, but at that moment, I decided impulsively. When I’m in need, Reddit is one of the first places I’d ask for help, maybe even before a close friend.

Out of the countless subreddits I could reach out to, I decided on /r/frugal. This subreddit concentrates on frugality as a mental approach while considering “time, money, convenience, and many other factors.” For a brief period of time time in college, I lived out my car and couch-surfed with supportive friends. I was lucky enough to have a support network and access to great Wi-Fi connections. That’s when I frequently visited this and similar Reddit forums. I learned how to make my own cheese from dollar store soy milk. I learned how to make money (mostly pennies) online from legitimate sites that wouldn’t rip you off. Most of all, I learned how to survive on almost nothing. I’m not the only one. I wanted to give back to the community. It was only fair. I posted the following message.

I wasn’t giving the phone away entirely for free. I asked for the minimum effort of paying for shipping, which later turned out to be $3.22. In reality, I graduated college days before this post. I am still applying to full-time jobs. I still practice habits I’ve learned from /r/frugal every day. As much as I wanted to give back, I couldn’t actually give this person money, even in the form of shipping. After all, the recipient could have been from anywhere in the world.

The following screenshots captivate the responses I’ve received. First, they started out as positive.

They started getting inquisitive.

This was a question I anticipated. As a fairly recent college graduate, it seems second nature to ask for a minimum 300-word response. It’s equivalent to the body of a brief cover letter. I’ve been in the job search for only a little a month. I nearly exhaust myself with crafting cover letters and revising my resume to apply for positions all over the country. It seemed tedious, but it was the basic requirement to get anywhere. I felt the same way towards an iPhone donation. If you want something for free, you should put in some effort into it.

Likewise, the comments got dark.

That user has point. I could’ve profited from an otherwise useless product in my possession. I could’ve easily sold it on eBay or a similar online marketplace. There’s a reason why I didn’t. I reached out to /r/frugal during a difficult time in my life. Frugality often attracts others going through similar hardships because it’s a way to get by and survive. Many members of the /r/frugal community are forced to make do with limited resources.

When I asked if anyone wanted an iPhone, I hoped that I wouldn’t reach out to anyone that didn’t actually need it. I hoped someone would reply with a genuine narrative, a heart-warming story. Sure, maybe that’s a selfish alternative to dropping the device off at thrift store. I was vulnerable to scammers. Despite resetting my previous device, I was convinced a hacker could manage to steal my private information for their advantage. However, at least with a social network, I have the opportunity to develop a digital relationship with the smartphone’s receipt. I have a minimal tie to that recipient’s identity. I’d rather hand it off to someone with a Reddit background, especially when I can view their account activity. Cue demonic laughter.

I felt foolish. Why would I give away a smartphone on Reddit? I was starting to get fed up with negative attention. I fed the trolls of the comment thread. I let their negativity get to me. I even considered deleting the post and shipping off to a business that bought smartphones. Some accused me of being a scammer. I selfishly didn’t want that reputation. Above all, I wanted to let the forum know there are Reddit users that look out for each other; /r/frugal is a digital, open-source community. Just before I lost hope entirely, a user messaged me with a compelling story.

It’d been almost two years since the user had a functioning phone. Previously, he purchased a Nexus 4. Upon the package’s delivery, he realized the phone was broken in the box, prior to the purchase. After disputing with the phone company several times, he was unable to exchange his broken device for one that functioned. The company, essentially, agreed to charge them the price of a new phone (about $300) in exchange fees. They just didn’t have that extra money lying around. That’s the case for most of us on /r/frugal. Even when the price of the Nexus went down, the company refused to refund the user. Since the interaction, the Reddit user finally got the Nexus to work after a year, but not to its fullest capacity.

“I can’t use cellular service because something in the hardware must be broken, as it can see its own IMEI or connect to any kind of cellular network. Essentially, the cellular radio is, for all intents and purposes, broken. I’ve been trying to use Skype on it via Wi-Fi to be able to make and receive calls, but calls drop for no reason all the freaking time. On top of that, not being able to make an emergency call while I’m stuck somewhere because the cellular service doesn’t work makes me nervous.”

The user described how beneficial it would to have a usable phone. On top of it, they broke their ankle last year and had difficulty finding work after not working for an extended period of time.

Immediately after reading that message, I cleared my phone from apps, music, contacts, and other personal data. I drove to the local post office and sent it off that afternoon, only hours after my original post. It arrived that later that week. I asked the recipient to post about it.

Luckily, I finally experienced genuine, positive feedback after this shout-out.

As of the date and time I’ve published this post, that thank-you thread is at the top of /r/frugal. There was even a response post about repurposing obsolete phones.

I didn’t have the intention of writing this piece when I first thought donating my iPhone on Reddit. I originally gravitated towards writing a piece because I was disgusted with my responses. Whether those commenters were trolls or not, I want to give people assurance. Everyone altruistically seeks profit over the welfare of another person. If there were a way I’d ship without spending a penny, I’d do it in a heartbeat. Carrier pigeons are, unfortunately, not a resource of mine.

There are alternatives to letting your old phone collect dust in a drawer or contributing to e-waste. Don’t only do it for the environment. Do it for someone in need. Acknowledge the resources you already have and recognize your privilege. For those of you with unused devices, I encourage you all to make use of smartphones or dumbphones alike. Donate your phone to /r/donateyourphone. And if you’re someone in need, post your story on /r/donateyourphone. Happy donating!