I can hear my grandmother playing this wartime number on the piano if I try hard enough:
Pack up your troubles in your old kit bag
Packing isn’t always this free and easy.
Life doesn’t often resemble wartime propaganda songs.
Yet, There’s something about packing up the material parts of your life into boxes that puts those material things and their value into sharp relief.
This will be my third inter-continental move in 5 years. I’ve got parts of the process so ingrained that I hold onto things with a much lighter hand than I might once have. But, I’m also aware of the beauty and wonder of staying connected to people and places through objects and art.
These connections and memories are important to me. But they are more important than the intrinsic material value of the objects themselves. It is about moments, memories, places, and people. It is about knowing that there will be ‘home’ infused into wherever I live because of these things. But it is also the freedom to let go of those things that have served for a season!
I have grown into enjoy items, books, and clothing for a season and then passing them along when it is time to move on. This isn’t about being wasteful, but rather enjoying what I have without feeling like I need to carry ‘things’ along with me just because they were once useful.
It all feels a little overwhelming right now. Hopefully, once these boxes are off on their merry journey to the other side of the world the dust will settle and I can get the cottage ship shape before I leave!