I am underway with moving. The first boxes are packed. Hermit crab living has become my new term for living in transition. These are my specially prescribed lessons in trusting the journey. I embrace it, then freak out, and wonder if I’m losing it. Who moves before they know where they are going? (Ahem, with a 20-month old?)
Everything feels strenuous when I get bogged down with details. I stare at my belongings, and 10 voices inside argue about being kept or tossed.
“But they were a gift! He only wore it once! You LOVED this a few years ago! Who throws out memorabilia from their wedding day? You really want to throw away your 9th grade year book! What if you want to read it someday?”
Well actually, no.
There is no accident that this scrap of paper fell out of my journal while I frazzled on.
The words could not be more perfect.
I was blessed to have my dear friend Annette’s help. Annette is a professional organizer who gets people on track for a living. I enjoy organizing and find it cathartic, but with this move I felt stuck. What am I taking? What goes to storage? What are the 50 – 80% of possessions I’m releasing to embrace minimalist living?
“I want a clean slate!” my inner minimalist originally told Annette, before realizing maybe this, and that, and oh yes – one of those might be worth holding onto.
We made major headway cleaning out the kitchen and keeping the china, packing it away for future celebrations.
packed as beautifully on the inside as on the outside with leopard packing tape
There were signs while we packed that I was on the right path. We would need this, and a few minutes later a better solution appeared. I completely forgot I had china boxes until I searched for another box in my garage thinking, JACKPOT! Perfect fits, and even in the imperfections, clever solutions made this journey relatively smooth.
dessert plates and coffee filters
Another cool a-ha with dessert plates and coffee filters.
The devil really does live in the details.
But friends liks Annette – not so much. She sees the big picture while not allowing fears to cloud my vision. Tonight, I am one step closer to leaving my shell and embracing another journey. “TRUST. Connecting thread is love. The picture will be beautiful. Wait and see.” (Melody Beattie – Journey to the Heart).
Wow sounds like you are in the middle of a major move. I like what your friend Annette says: it will all work out. In 9 years, I moved 12 times, each time with less and less stuff. Because the last move was from australia to europe and transport was horribly expensive we got it all down to 4 cubic metre – then had to storre everything for a year whilst we refurbished our place. The basement where it was all stored flooded so we ended up throwing out again half of that. I have barely missed anything…. Wishing you lots of peace on your journey! PS I love the leopard packing tape!!!
Hi Annemarie!
Thank you for your encouraging words. I am so impressed by 4 cubic meters of living space (if you could see my American calculations visualizing that with my arms in this moment, you might smile!) Your experience is the kind which inspires me to keep going: )
hi there
. I’m in susannah’s class with you and came over from FB. Friends have an ability to hep with some really interesting situations, don’t they. LI love what you siad “she sees teh bigger picture and doesn’t allow fear to cloud your vision.” Sometimes we thnk that “home” stuff has to be taken care of all by ourselves, when really, there shouldn’t be any shame in needing a helping hand at home. Back in the day, we had lots of help in our own homes, and we helped others. love this post 
and good luck! I never moved without knowing where, but, I did move countries when pregnant and let me tell you…it was an adventure!
Hi Jess! So true about thinking we need to take care of everything ourselves. Thank God for good friends – right? You inspire me – moving between countries and pregnant!
Love the coffee filter concept!
I really appreciate the tug between longing for the clean slate and finding things which are difficult to let go of. Take a photo of them?
Hi Alexa, I thought of this – but having my friend talk me through it, my internal struggle was so much quicker. I will definitely put some things up for a keep/toss vote if I get stuck again!
You are so lucky to have a friend who keeps you on track and sees the big picture for you. I’ve moved so many times I’ve lost track (dad and husband both in the army), but it was always an adventure!
Hi Annette,
Yes I am! My friend (also an Annette who has moved frequently: ) is like a precious gem.
[...] week started with my friend Annette coming to help me prepare for my upcoming move. I get by with a little help from my [...]