Thursday, September 29, 2011
As I am looking around and “planning” on packing I realize that my deep rooted issues with moving go way back to even before I was born!
My Mother used to tell the story that I was on my way to being born when I decided to try and go back into the womb! I had to be forced into moving even then!!!
Well, things haven’t changed much in the last (almost) 46 years. As I am about to approach my 46th birthday and only the 5th move that I have made in my adult life I realize I want to stay right where I am, not because it is absolutely perfect or anything, simply because I don’t want to move! Things haven’t changed much in 46 years, clearly I can’t stay where I am!!!
I am now and have always been afflicted with a bit of OCD when it comes to my surroundings. I like everything to be clean, neat, organized and everything, I mean EVERYTHING must have its appropriate place and must not be moved unless I review the options, think about it and decide that it would be the best new “spot” for such item.
Hence, when I went away to college, for the first time, it was my feeling that I had to have EVERYTHING with me. To my parent’s dismay, I more or less won that argument. While I somewhat adapted over the years the one thing my parents were continually frustrated with, was that when it was time to come pick me up with the usual U-Haul in tow to empty out my single dorm room, I had nothing packed!
The issue, as I now realize, was that because everything HAD to have its place, I couldn’t remove it from that place. Its place wasn’t in a box and “what if” I needed it before I could replace it in its appropriate spot back in my bedroom at home? What a dilemma??? So each Spring, as every college student was packing up and preparing to leave for the Summer, I went about as if I wasn’t going anywhere.
My Mom, God bless her, was the patient one that understood my disorder and kept my Dad calm as she lovingly helped me pack while she explained to me why we had to pack up each book, each pillow, my clothing, albums, alarm clock and every other item that I had ever so neatly put it in its “place” in my temporary dwelling.
Even now I realize how ridiculous it all was I also realize I couldn’t help it. Just like I cannot help it now. I have a move pending in about a week. I have barely anything packed. My house is upside down and things are in disorder and disarray and I am doing my very best to ignore this. I managed to start the clean out and downsizing process in order to have a fairly successful yard sale last weekend. Besides that….nothing is done and very little is actually currently packed.
Yes, I’m busy, yes, my back is excruciatingly painful right now, yes, it is difficult but seriously….what AM I thinking???
The last time I moved, 7 years ago, I moved from a duplex to my current 4 bedroom/8 room house. The representative from the moving company came in and gave me a quote based on what he “saw.” When the movers came to move me the lead mover came up to me, pointed a finger in my face and said “lady, you know what you are?” I asked, “what?” He glared at me, pointed his finger in my face again and angrily exclaimed, “YOU ARE A TUCKER!” I had no idea what a Tucker was but this mover was all too happy to explain to me that a tucker is the worst kind of person to move, worse than a hoarder because nobody knows (not even the guy who came from the company to give me an estimate) how much actual “stuff” I have organized so neatly in “its place.” What happens when you begin to move everything from its rightful place to pack up, well, it tends to “grow”, what seemed like just a little bit of stuff is actually A LOT!!!!! Just as an FYI, Movers HATE Tuckers. It wasn’t a delightful day for anyone involved. I tipped him as generously as possible to try and alleviate his obvious contempt for me.
Well, now I am faced with a move that includes a significant down size. I don’t NEED all the stuff I have, never did. When times were better my husband and I had a bit of an addiction to HomeGoods which meant we got some really cool household items for a really good price and felt that we just couldn’t live without it.
I had a little bit of extra space so I thought, wouldn’t it be wonderful to make a nice home for all of my “stuff.” Now what? Well, I have a bunch of boxes, some packing material, a lot of stuff to pack and a move date.
What do I do? There is no time to get serious psychological help for what I now realize has been a lifelong “issue” I have had since the day I was born! So, I need to pray, ask God for His guidance and His strength, appreciate help and LISTEN to the advice that I have received from my sister, close friends and those wonderful people who have helped me move in the past and taught me to part with “cherished keepsakes,” like the old pair of saddle shoes with the purple and gold pom poms on them I thought I just had to keep from my kickline days in High School.
I gave them up, I can give up some of this other “stuff.” I can take things from their existing place and give them a new place in my new home. I’m definitely not “mobile” as my sister puts it but I can do better than I have been doing!
TIME TO MOVE IT!!!
“I can do all things, through Christ, who gives me strength” – Philippians 4:13
As I am looking around and “planning” on packing I realize that my deep rooted issues with moving go way back to even before I was born!
My Mother used to tell the story that I was on my way to being born when I decided to try and go back into the womb! I had to be forced into moving even then!!!
Well, things haven’t changed much in the last (almost) 46 years. As I am about to approach my 46th birthday and only the 5th move that I have made in my adult life I realize I want to stay right where I am, not because it is absolutely perfect or anything, simply because I don’t want to move! Things haven’t changed much in 46 years, clearly I can’t stay where I am!!!
I am now and have always been afflicted with a bit of OCD when it comes to my surroundings. I like everything to be clean, neat, organized and everything, I mean EVERYTHING must have its appropriate place and must not be moved unless I review the options, think about it and decide that it would be the best new “spot” for such item.
Hence, when I went away to college, for the first time, it was my feeling that I had to have EVERYTHING with me. To my parent’s dismay, I more or less won that argument. While I somewhat adapted over the years the one thing my parents were continually frustrated with, was that when it was time to come pick me up with the usual U-Haul in tow to empty out my single dorm room, I had nothing packed!
The issue, as I now realize, was that because everything HAD to have its place, I couldn’t remove it from that place. Its place wasn’t in a box and “what if” I needed it before I could replace it in its appropriate spot back in my bedroom at home? What a dilemma??? So each Spring, as every college student was packing up and preparing to leave for the Summer, I went about as if I wasn’t going anywhere.
My Mom, God bless her, was the patient one that understood my disorder and kept my Dad calm as she lovingly helped me pack while she explained to me why we had to pack up each book, each pillow, my clothing, albums, alarm clock and every other item that I had ever so neatly put it in its “place” in my temporary dwelling.
Even now I realize how ridiculous it all was I also realize I couldn’t help it. Just like I cannot help it now. I have a move pending in about a week. I have barely anything packed. My house is upside down and things are in disorder and disarray and I am doing my very best to ignore this. I managed to start the clean out and downsizing process in order to have a fairly successful yard sale last weekend. Besides that….nothing is done and very little is actually currently packed.
Yes, I’m busy, yes, my back is excruciatingly painful right now, yes, it is difficult but seriously….what AM I thinking???
The last time I moved, 7 years ago, I moved from a duplex to my current 4 bedroom/8 room house. The representative from the moving company came in and gave me a quote based on what he “saw.” When the movers came to move me the lead mover came up to me, pointed a finger in my face and said “lady, you know what you are?” I asked, “what?” He glared at me, pointed his finger in my face again and angrily exclaimed, “YOU ARE A TUCKER!” I had no idea what a Tucker was but this mover was all too happy to explain to me that a tucker is the worst kind of person to move, worse than a hoarder because nobody knows (not even the guy who came from the company to give me an estimate) how much actual “stuff” I have organized so neatly in “its place.” What happens when you begin to move everything from its rightful place to pack up, well, it tends to “grow”, what seemed like just a little bit of stuff is actually A LOT!!!!! Just as an FYI, Movers HATE Tuckers. It wasn’t a delightful day for anyone involved. I tipped him as generously as possible to try and alleviate his obvious contempt for me.
Well, now I am faced with a move that includes a significant down size. I don’t NEED all the stuff I have, never did. When times were better my husband and I had a bit of an addiction to HomeGoods which meant we got some really cool household items for a really good price and felt that we just couldn’t live without it.
I had a little bit of extra space so I thought, wouldn’t it be wonderful to make a nice home for all of my “stuff.” Now what? Well, I have a bunch of boxes, some packing material, a lot of stuff to pack and a move date.
What do I do? There is no time to get serious psychological help for what I now realize has been a lifelong “issue” I have had since the day I was born! So, I need to pray, ask God for His guidance and His strength, appreciate help and LISTEN to the advice that I have received from my sister, close friends and those wonderful people who have helped me move in the past and taught me to part with “cherished keepsakes,” like the old pair of saddle shoes with the purple and gold pom poms on them I thought I just had to keep from my kickline days in High School.
I gave them up, I can give up some of this other “stuff.” I can take things from their existing place and give them a new place in my new home. I’m definitely not “mobile” as my sister puts it but I can do better than I have been doing!
TIME TO MOVE IT!!!
“I can do all things, through Christ, who gives me strength” – Philippians 4:13
Keep blogging, Patty! You have much wisdom to share~
ReplyDelete:-) Thank you!! xoxo
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