July 3, 2014

SHIP, STORE, CARRY

We left our house for good two weeks ago and flew to North Carolina for family and wedding fun.  I hardly thought about the reality of it all while packing, moving and cleaning, and it wasn’t until my final walk-through of our empty house that it really hit me: “This is the last time I’ll be in our house.”  I got teary in the closet and had a little cry when thanking the house for our nearly six years.  Now, while driving back from Carolina Beach, NC, I think about returning home.  But, our home is not longer.  Our stuff is either shoved into our 5x10x9 storage unit or sailing across the seas to the Philippines.  We are staying at our friends’ house who just happen to be on vacation for a month.  While it’s so nice to have a place to stay for a bit, it’s not our home.  I found myself last night saying, “When we get back to Oregon” instead of when we get back home.  I realized that our routines, schedules and daily rhythms will be pretty much nonexistent until a few weeks after we arrive in the islands.  We are, and will continue to be, going with flow, being flexible and taking each day as it comes – even more so than before.  Michael and I were discussing things we’d like to do when back in Oregon and I mentioned canoe camping.  He was quick to remind me that we have no tent, sleeping pads or any camping items at all as we shipped them.  So… canoe camping is out…

Our life and all of our possessions have been sorted and separated into three categories: store, ship, carry.  This was, of course, after eliminating and giving away as much as possible.  This sorting task was much tougher than originally thought; ensuring that we have enough clothing when we get there in case our shipped goods are later than expected, trying to decipher what photos and artwork to ship to decorate our new abode, hoping we haven’t packed our suitcases too heavy for the plane, storing nearly all of our winter wear despite still needing it for summer nights in Central Oregon, trying to stay within our allotted shipping amount, and ultimately realizing that we have a lot more stuff than we thought.  Now I have random moments of “Where is the blanket?”, “What did we do with the huge plant?”, and “Wait, did we empty the freezer out?”.  These seem to come mostly in the middle of the night and keep me preoccupied for a bit.