When I was first married, a few hundred years ago, we moved house regularly ... more than most and the thing I liked about it was that moving house was like spring-cleaning, I was always inspired to stream-line.The divorce stream-lined life further as I couldn't afford much and then there was the 25kg luggage limit when moving to Turkey. I was down to what would fit in my backpack and hand-luggage, with a big bottle of favourite perfume stuffed in my coat pocket.
The Belgium move saw me paying 200euro to move some of my books with me and I carried the 3.5kg Magnum book as hand luggage, along with the laptop and camera-gear - remarkable in light of the hangover friends gave me that last night in the city.
Still, almost 3 years later and I just spent hours going through all my papers and folders and boxes and stream-lining again. Exhausting but satisfying.
I'm heading back to Istanbul early in June and will pick up the last of my Istanbul life while I'm there then New Zealand sometime soon maybe too ... 400 books in 3 different houses, a lifetime of (stream-lined) STUFF and a 25kg luggage limit on the way home.
Maybe I'll explore the 800euro sea-crate again but maybe it's going to be nice to fit my life back together.
Thing is you really didn't need all those things to find happiness again. You've grown tremendously since Istanbul. Life always makes people do unexpected things, but that's the best bit about it. We just have to let that happen, and you succeed in that with splendour and now you're starting to harvest from your past decisions. (I should so completely write horoscopes or something, I'd rock at it).
ReplyDeleteI just had to get through and then recover from the immigrant experience here.
ReplyDeleteI always been like that ... changing.
The other day I realised that I've lived all kinds of lives - then university at 33, Istanbul at 38 and etc ... still the evolution continues.
You are like a chameleon; so many experiences, so many changes yet you remain yourself at the centre - brillaint and colourful.
ReplyDeleteChiefbiscuit, thank you. You made me smile with your comment. It will be good to get home and meet you finally.
ReplyDeleteThe streamlining is a good thing--the process of it, inside and out.
ReplyDeleteOngoing for me...
Good luck, Ms V :)
ReplyDeleteWhen we moved into our house in Belgium it was the first time in ten years that I managed to get most of my stuff together in one place after having it spread across three countries. Although there are still an awful lot of books in a cupboard at my parents' house...
ReplyDeleteLol, it's like that, isn't it Simon. I'm hoping that I'll be like you one day soon but I think there's going to be some discarding of stuff next time I'm in New Zealand.
ReplyDelete