Moving is my most hated and most loved activity! For obvious reasons, I can’t stand it. It’s not just moving the big things but you quickly realize how many small things you have to move and it goes on and on, almost never ending. Memorabilia like anniversary cards just can’t be thrown away. But at least you don’t have to worry about photos and photo albums anymore – your photos are now housed on your computer’s hard drive or your Facebook albums.
But what I love is the opportunity to shed so much stuff! Moving requires you to go through your closet, attic, storage rooms, storage units, drawers and shelves and clean house. You realize how many of your things are disposable. Most fascinating is that when you look through your storage closet, storage unit or attic, you see things that you stored years earlier because you didn’t feel like you could part with them. But after several years out of sight and presumably not missed, it makes it so much easier to throw it all away! It made me realize that storage units aren’t for storage – they’re vehicles for a “trial separation” from your ostensibly precious items. Once the trial separation is over, you suddenly recognize you can do without them and throwing it in the dumpster (or in the case of usable items, giving it away) can be very cathartic.
Aside from the love/hate relationship, there’s a humorous side to moving as well. Finding the pull-up bars and strength cords associated with the P90X DVD’s, you realize, like many Americans, that your dedication to that exercise program was left wanting. Probably my favorite “find” while cleaning was a framed progress report from pre-school! On the left side, was a list of activities or skills that I should possess by the end of pre-school. On the right is two columns – “can do” and “needs help”. There was about 20 skills listed on the page and I received a check under the “can do” column for 19 of them. The one that I needed help? Can state full name. Seriously.
Just some quick background for fear my past and future patients question my surgical skills if I’m unable to state my full name. My first and last name have always been the same but when I was still very young my middle name was changed to honor my mother’s maiden name. And at the age of 5, while taking my pre-school exit exam, I was apparently confused as to what my official middle name was. Thus the grade of “needs help” when it came to stating my full name.
I’m still in the process of packing so I can’t wait to see what I find next!
