I've been thinking about birds lately. In particular, migratory birds and the way they relocate twice a year, sometimes hundreds of miles, and never have to pack a bag, much less a household full of furniture, dishes, and all those other things we can't get along without.
Our plan to combine households with Larry's mother is becoming a realty. We plan to move in about six weeks, and oh my! It is daunting to look around at our 32 years of accumulation and decide if we REALLY need to keep all those things. The kindergarten papers (and first grade, second grade, etc) are adorable, but do we need them? The toys and games we've been saving in case we have grandchildren someday.
The clothes that were in style 30 years ago, and the hundreds and hundreds of books we may want to read again. Someday.
Of course we all know that we can't get along without the guitars - I don't even know how many there are. Same with fabric and yarn.
The piano we've had for 30 years that no one plays. The trombone in the attic, along with the bowling ball and golf clubs no one has used in years.
I'll be spending the next six weeks sorting, packing, cleaning, and making lots of small decisions. I hope you have a great summer!
6 comments:
Daunting! Sorting, packing, moving always is...but after 32 years in one house? I just can't imagine it! I'll be thinking of you muchly over the next weeks and I hope it goes smoothly for you. Sometimes doing the 'right thing' is a huge undertaking. I really admire you taking this decision for the sake of Larry's Mom.
Thank you, Heather! I appreciate your kind words.
Oh my goodness! Good luck! We have moved several times, so I know a little of what you are facing. We have been living where we are now for 12 years, though, and it would be a major process for us to go through to move again. It's likely we will too in another five or six years, I think. I hope things go smoothly for you.
Thank you, Daisy! It's a big job.
Good luck with your sorting, if you ever need help thinking about what to keep and what not to keep I read this blog every so often about minimalism and it changed how I looked at stuff.
http://mnmlist.com/ I think this is the link to it.
I used to move quite often and while I am sentimental I am also quite practical so I have found it easy to de clutter, however having been in my present home for 12 yrs I know it would be harder than before so I can only imagine how difficult it must be to sort after 32 years.
Hi, Suzanne! We're making progress. Someone on Facebook make an excellent suggestion. If you have to think about whether or not to keep something for more than 10 seconds, you don't need it. I have applied that rule many many times; it works!
Post a Comment