Moving

    My wife and I had lived in our five-bedroom, two bath home for over twenty years and watched our children grow up and one by one move away.  The house was a split level and now was certainly too large for just the two of us.  So, we packed things up, sold many items, or gave things to the kids or to friends and moved into a two-bedroom, one bath apartment.  That was EIGHT years ago!  Now we are preparing to move again.

     Originally when we moved into our current apartment it was only going to be for one year until we made some adjustments and could decide exactly what we wanted to do.  But that decision time turned into those eight years and now here we are again packing up and getting ready to make a move.

     We are really looking forward to being in our new location.  The problem is THE MOVE!  It’s almost impossible to imagine how many additional things you collect within only eight years.  Going through the things you have and seeing things that you don’t even remember you own or kept.  And then you don’t know why you kept them?  Example:  My wife took a box out of my office closet and asked me if it was a “keeper” or could it be thrown away.  I asked her what it was?  She said “they are invoices from 1999.”  I thought “1999!” why did I even move them from the house during our original move?  They were thrown away (after shredding them).

     I think that’s the problem with moving.  You just have to get things packed away so you can carry them into your new location and unpack them!  We just hope that in the move things don’t get lost or misplaced.  Getting things back to their “normal” location so you can immediately begin to function again is always a big headache.  However, doing the move does give us another opportunity to thin things out and not continue to hang on to things that are really not necessary to have any longer.

     However, although I am going to fight the urge, and my wife says that she is also going to, moving does give you a chance to begin collecting new things that you will realize in a few years are things that you really didn’t need to have in the first place.

     I’m looking forward to the nice front yard that I can look at from the porch swing.  I’m thinking about getting a bird feeder and just sit there in the swing and watch the birds eat.  Maybe I should also add a bird bath?  Then before I know it another decade will have passed and multiple generations of birds would have enjoyed that feeder and bath.  I would have also gained much enjoyment from watching God’s creation and with some effort on my part perhaps I would have learned something that I can use in my own life.  Then again, maybe not:  We’re only human!

QUOTE TO CONSIDER

THOUGHTFUL GEM

"Moving cannot be done from a stationary position."