I began this year being lost in a sea of belongings and "keep-me's" and spent many days and nights and weekends working though my possessions and redistributing them. I've become a big poster on freecycle in a quest to make sure the belongings I was discarding were going to people who actually wanted them. It's all free and feels quite cathartic saying goodbye to things as they leave with their new owners. BBQ, storage bins, christmas decorations, old vhs videos, recycleable shopping bags, painting equipment, gardening items and masses of craft supplies.
And to what end ? Well it's all so that I can have an adventure.
I listed my house for sale, and it sold. It would have been great to have been almost mortgage free - like I should have been, had I not made other financial decisions - but I'll be okay. It was with some trepidation though that I actually took that step. I actually quite enjoyed living in the pristine order of show home world. But, I was quite an emotional wreck when the moment came to actually agree to an offer of sale - I'd spent more than 20 years living in this house. My daughter was just at primary school, and now she is an educated determined young woman with her dreams within her reach. I love that house, but it was time for a change for us both.
As I was dealing with all the emotions of the property market, I learned that my role at work was to be disestablished. What a long drawn out process that has been. I decided that it was a sign, that maybe it was reaffirming the other changes I was making, but that didn't make it any easier to deal with. The last four weeks have been the worst, I felt quite disenfranchised by the process, but finally the decision was made.
Now it does feel like the universe is aligned. House sale is settled on the same day I finish work, and then next step can begin.
This weekend I have had my possessions all packed up and put in storage until I decide where I want them to go next. Not everything is packed though, there is still a bit of a mess to sort out and tidy up. What clothes do I need ? What sentimental pieces to remind me of home ? And of course there is cleaning ! We really should clean behind our stoves, fridges and washing machine much more frequently - gross, to say the least.
And so the adventure ? I'm going to move to the UK. Pretty scary, but exciting at the same time. I've always wanted to do it, but life sort of got in the way. I don't know if it will be for 6 months or 1 year or 5, but I want to give it a go. I'm going to miss lots, people, family, the harbour in the morning on a calm day with the sun lighting the hills so that each layer has it's own dimension, tuis and other birdlife in my garden waking me each morning and talking to me throughout the day.
But, life is full of experiences and I'm going to go and make new memories and experience new things; live on the edge for a bit and hopefully make a new life in a new place. And if it doesn't work out, I can always just come home and bring all my new memories with me.
And the best thing about this adventure ? I get to do it with an amazing young woman who wants to experience the same things that I do. My daughter. How lucky am I ?
Now back to the sorting...
