I’ve come to believe that there are only two types of people in this world: those who absolutely hate moving, and those who absolutely love it. There just is no middle-ground when faced with the reality of moving one’s entire household of belongings from one location to another completely different location. You can’t be like, “Meh, I could take it or leave it!” It either evokes horror or giddiness, and thankfully, I fall on the side of the giddy group.
We have spent the last few days boxing up all of our belongings and driving them down to our new house load by load by load. By load. After the one millionteenth trip, I really start to ask myself, “Do I really need all of this stuff? I mean, who really needs a BED anyways?” heh. My three favorite things about moving are the purging, the perspective, and the rearranging. I love being forced to go through every closet and every drawer and decide whether the things I find there are worth their weight in the gas money it will take to transport them somewhere else. If I wasn’t forced to do so every once in a while, you might see me on a future episode of ‘Hoarders’, clutching an old Nokia cellphone box from 1998 in one hand and snuggling an empty waterbed bag in the other like a disheveled security blanket. I tend to tuck things away and forget about them for… years. Purging while moving always makes me feel lighter on my feet, and I like that.
I also appreciate the sharp perspective that I gain while moving. When I see all of my belongings lined up in boxes against the wall or in the back of a truck, perspective smacks me upside the head. You can really start to see where your priorities lie when you’re standing face-to-face with your stuff like that, can’t you? It’s quite a vulnerable thing. Someone who loves to host and cook may have 20 boxes of dishes and serving trays. I, on the other hand, have 20 boxes of vintage dresses that I hardly ever wear anymore. Perspective. Maybe I should buy some dishes that actually match each other and aren’t cracked and donate some of these dresses so they can be used and loved by others? Lightbulb! Also, next time I am thrifting and I see yet another vintage dress on the rack, I’ll be able to tell myself to back away slowly so no one gets hurt. Zooming out on your own life is always a good practice, and I love that moving helps me do that.
The last thing that I just love about moving is the rearranging. I am a rearranger at heart. If I didn’t have a family to keep me accountable, I’d probably be rearranging the furniture in my house every three days. Or even while I was typing this. Am I the only one with this problem? Rooms feel like puzzles to me and I love trying to solve them. New houses are blank slates, and I love how it forces me to look at all of my belongings in a new light. The thing that worked so well in the dining room at the old house might work wonderfully in the family room at the new house. It allows me to be creative and think outside of the box with the things I already posses, which is always a good thing! It kind of breathes new life into things and make me appreciate what I have again. Maybe it was all those years of playing Tetris as a kid, I don’t know, but getting to shift things around and mix things up like that just makes me happy, and saves me money at the same time. For example, the old bunk bed ladder that we don't need anymore can lean against the wall and make a great place to hang folded towels in the master bathroom now! Boom. Puzzle master!
So as I move, purge, reprioritize, and rearrange this week, I’ll be thinking of all the ways the hard work really is worth it. But I’m keeping the Nokia box. Because you never know… that manual could come in real handy some day.
You can find Emery on Instagram at @emeryjo.
