My husband and I made a decision to move to Wisconsin back in January...with plans to begin a small homestead, farm-to-table, slow living sort of adventure. Initially I felt eager for everything to happen at once. I think it was my way of wanting to get the hard parts over quickly so I wouldn't have to deal with the discomfort. The universe has not conspired in my favor on that one. What should have taken 3 months tops has taken much longer just to get my license to practice occupational therapy in the state of Wisconsin. This has slowed the whole process down and forced me to be very patient. During this time I have developed a growing interest in "clutter-free living" and "minimalism" and have read many books on the subject matter (recommended reading coming in a future post). As a result I have used this time to methodically go through each and every single one of our possessions. Per the recommendation of various experts on the matter, I have compiled all like-items and held each one in my hand to determine if it brings me joy or serves a highly practical function in my life. I have felt a lovely cathartic release with each purge and found myself easily letting go of things I once thought I might hold onto forever. Mind you, I have never been a pack-rat or anything even close...but there are always those things that lurke in the back of drawers and closets that get pulled out once in a blue moon just long enough to get shoved back. My husband and I have both had to be very honest with ourselves and each other. The process of clearing out has raised many an eyebrow and a few vocal cords...but ultimately has drawn us closer. I have felt a new harmony arise in our home simply from knowing that each thing we have is something we both find beauty or value in. At moments I have wanted to just get rid of everything but then reason won over my rashness. This weekend it finally came time to begin boxing everything up. To my pleasant surprise it was amazingly easy. Since everything had already been purged all we had to do was pick up, wrap up, put in and tape shut. I have a very small pile of things to take to the consignment shop and thrift store. I have 3 huge boxes of memorabelia ready for a bonfire accompanied by a glass of my favorite Prosecco. As I pack each item I feel joyful anticipation at the thought of receiving each treasure on the other end of this move. I can see it in its new place and feel the purpose it might serve. I feel that each item will support us in moving forward into our new adventure vs. dragging and holding us back. I am grateful for the exercise in patience and reminded that my own timeline and agenda may not always have my best interest in mind. I am grateful that there is always a bigger energy than myself at play and I can trust its movement through my life. Now that I have formally expressed my gratitude about the opportunity to learn patience, maybe tomorrow will be the day I hear back from the Wisconsin OT Board about my license!
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I'm Kelly Isabelle.Full-time workin' mama & spouse aspiring to live a slowly paced, sustainably minded, creatively expressed, clutter-free life shared with kindred folk. Archives
March 2020
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