What is that feeling when you’re driving away from people and they recede on the plain till you see their specks dispersing? – it’s the too-huge world vaulting us, and it’s good-bye. But we lean forward to the next crazy venture beneath the skies.
Jack Kerouac
Hey, Lovelies.
This packing up your life thing is so immense. So tiring. So all-consuming.
The clock is ticking down now, and we are scrambling to get everything done here before we leave the farm. What matters most is being able to get everything packed, or sold, or shifted.
I’ve given barely a thought to our new home.
I’m okay with things being make-shift there for a while. I’ll be happy to camp in the new house, to have only the essentials, to have not given a thought to decor or where everything might go.
I’m planning on not rushing. So what if it takes time for it all to come together? I want to feel into it. Get an idea of the people we will become in this new space, and the lives we might live. I won’t know that on the first day in our new place. I need to get a sense of how the light comes through the windows, and how the house feels at different times of the day, of what the spaces might be used for, and how they could be filled.
But before I even get to that? I will need time to collapse. Time to sleep. Time to gather myself back together.
The rest can wait.
The thought of having plenty of time at the other end of this move is a great comfort.
Three more weeks and we’ll be there.
Until then? Pack, drink tea, pack, drink tea, pack, drink tea. Remain calm. Repeat.
How long did it take you to settle in to your home, the last time you shifted? Got any tips for me?
Big hugs, endless boxes, and funny little piles of things we still can’t quite decide what to do with, Lots of love, Nicole xx
All the best with your move. It’s great to do it like you would eat an elephant – one bite at a time. I think your “Pack, drink tea, pack, drink tea, pack, drink tea. Remain calm. Repeat.” is gentle genius
When I moved into the home I’m in now – I didn’t even have a dining room for the first six months. I wanted to feel the house. I enjoyed having a big space to walk into (while knowing there was a room upstairs that was dedicated to boxes that I was ignoring 😉 )
I took a year to figure out exactly where I wanted to hang the artwork I had – and then changed that around while I accumulated other pieces (let go of some to make room for others) I wanted to see where and how the light fell in my home – all year round.
My tips would be: Take it slow (Rome wasn’t built in a day)
Be kind to yourself
Know that it’s an evolution and you will grow into your home / and it into you. I LOVE how you said: Get an idea of the people we will become in this new space, and the lives we might live.”
And I know I don’t need to tell you to trust your intuition and listen to your higher self.
Remember, people come to visit you – not your home – so don’t worry if your friends want to drop by and it’s not all set up. I’ve shared some fun times with friends & wine and pizza while sitting on moving boxes.
Sending you all the love and knowing you and Ben and the dogs will make the best memories and have the best adventures in your new abode.
xoxoxox
All I can say is that I am soooo excited for you! A new shift, a new chapter and a new infusion of energy. Take time to enjoy the process.
Nicole, if your jam is to have all things organized, I have two words: Container Store – this is how I want to organize my future life once I’ve unpacked and settled in that new space too. Use what is necessary, only really have what I need and the need to declutter is so important – I realized with this move back to Oz about all the “stuff” we accumulate – I find it so much more relaxing to have less – quality over quantity
I love the idea of being in your space and working out the light/ spatial/energy needs and taking your time to decide where things will go. Just being in that space until you’re ready to find what works – couldn’t agree more
I still have some things I have yet to find from moving here to our piece of paradise near Nimbin FIVE years ago!! This year my boys are doing 5 days a week at school for the first time, so I have high hopes, although it’s week 3 and I’m still scrambling around a mile off getting through the backlog that’s in view…my husband bought a container and placed all the boxes in it, out of sight, because he couldn’t bear looking at them anymore – there they lay, in wait, for me to find treasures (and a lot of stuff for the opshop/recycle place once I find the bits that go together with the other bits…..) <3
Ahhhh I love your words of wisdom.
All the VERY best for your move. I keep wondering if my husband will come and move you, he does all the packs for Grace, so if you're using them, he will be……..! He is a fabulous packer & all round person 🙂
Nicole, the way you are describing your plan for taking your time at the other end sounds wonderful and perfect to me. I can feel you camping inside the house and slowly, when the time is right, the tendrils of yourselves will send themselves out into the nooks and crannies of your new home, they will feel the light and the warmth and the coolness and they will help you find the right place for the things you have brought with you, or which you will find when you are rested and ready. “Get the idea of the people we will become in this new space, and the lives me might live.” – this sentence just sends a thrill of delight through me…for you, and for some part of me that yearns to do the same. I am tucking that thought away until the time comes for me to do the same! And in the meantime, ongoing blessings to you both as you navigate the ongoing packing up. xxSimone
Moving is a big job