This is shaping up to be the easiest move we’ve made yet! We have already whittled down our “stuff” so much, which makes the packing much easier.  But there’s always that “stuff” that’s too sentimental or special to get rid of.

The Sentimental Stuff

For me, books, photo albums and dishes are the sentimental stuff.

Last year, my friend, Jana took me to the grandaddy of book sales. She and I are both book-lovers, so, I was excited to go. However, I had NO IDEA it was going to be such a never-seen-anything-like-it book sale!

To be honest, I thought the full-size shopping carts at the entrance were overkill – until…we had our hands stamped and proceeded inside the Palmer Event Center.  It’s no small venue.  You can pack a ton of books into a space like that.  Literally.  A ton.

Just mention book sale to a reader, and you’ve got an hour’s worth of conversation.

Just mention a Half-Price Books sale to a reader, and you’ve got a delightful afternoon of whispered book recommendations and shopping cart sharing.  Whispering is the etiquette rule, of course, because it would just be simply irreverent to squeal with delight upon finding all three titles in a series at fifty cents each.  (See why they provide a shopping cart?)

We filled our cart and then found a corner to stack our stash, compare, eliminate, discuss, and eliminate some more until we finally dragged ourselves away, carrying all we could hold in our big plastic shopping bags. Truly, I have never seen two more delighted shoppers than we two reader friends.

So, when we started packing to move downtown, and knowing we would have less space for books, I filled a duffel bag and this box, sat in the floor beside them like they were golden coins or something, and told Mike I just cannot get rid of any more books.  It must have been the tone of my voice, but he looked over and said very tenderly that he certainly didn’t think I should get rid of any books I wanted to keep.

Why I feel that way about mere pages between covers, I do not know, but I do know I’m not alone.

So, most of the books are making the trip downtown, along with a new resolve to read them all.

Pride in the Paring

Have you ever asked yourself if the tornado siren blared in the middle of the night and you had to make a run for it, what would you make sure got thrown into the trunk of the car? Or have you watched episodes of Tiny House Big Life, declaring to each other that you could never do that? Well, people lose everything in tornadoes, fires and floods – and lots of people get rid of all but the bare essentials to live in a tiny space.

I have always had just a tiny bit of pride that I could pare it all down, that I really am not a materialistic person. I’ve always known that every single thing we have is on loan from God anyway.

BUT…I’m taking my books.

Taking my Dishes

I’m also taking my two sets of inherited dishes FOR SURE.  I’ll find a place for them! Indeed, I intend to find a place for these 22, yes, 22 cups and 22 saucers. After all, what would the matching dinner plates, platters and serving bowls do without them?

If I ever, ever, ever in my long-legged life have 22 friends over for a dainty tea party, I’ll be ready, dadgum it.

Books, dishes and photo albums.  These are my treasures, and they are packed up, ready to go.

So, here we go.

Hard to Believe

We’re moving downtown.  I can hardly believe it.  We’ll walk to work and walk home for lunch. No more  sharing our sandwiches on the corner benches?

Well, maybe once in a while.

Encouraging a little downsizing and a lot of intentional adventure,