Two years ago our life changed. We packed “our UK life” into a five foot square storage unit, and travelled to Tasmania for an “adult gap year”. We’ve had a great time and for the foreseeable future, Hobart is now home.
When we packed up, we didn’t know where our next home would be, what size, what we’d need, so the packing up process was interesting. In reality, there are very few things that we have actually missed in the two years.
We are now back in London to catch up with family and friends and for the task of clearing the storage unit, reviewing our “stuff”.
We’ve had three days of sorting.
~ Furniture, tools, TV, DVD, kitchen equipment, hand bags, clothes, all donated.
~ Books, LP’s, 45’s and CD’s sold.
A few surprises, lots of memories.
So we are down to a dozen boxes in my Mum’s loft. A small pile of things to take back to Tassie. We can now relax and enjoy the rest of our holiday.
I’ve had the song from “Frozen” going through my head as a mantra …”Let It Go”. It’s just stuff.
I haven’t dared open the box of photos yet! I need to see if I have a day to spare to get lost in that task.
RuthsArc 
You’re right, it is just stuff. Enjoy your time in London.
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Sure will, Miriam 🙂
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It’s amazing what we can part with when we need to. Good luck with sorting through the box of photos. I always find this a difficult exercise for they represent someone’s life. If it helps, when I was sorting through my Mom’s photos, I had a number of ziplock bags with names of family members on them. When I sorted through the pictures, any I thought a family member might like, went into their respective baggie & passed along to them for perusal to decide whether they would like to keep them or dispose of them.
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That’s a great idea, Lynn. I know what’s in the box, so I don’t really need to sort it, I’d just like to have a few photos of each year, with us in Hobart, rather than in a box in UK. It’s just not worth shipping the whole box.
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I would imagine it’s like opening a time capsule to find all these things from your “previous life”. How odd it must have felt to go through these things.
The photos will be a challenge – at least they are for me. I’m still burdened with 2 boxes of my mom’s photos. I’m afraid the next generation will have the burden – times 2, with all of mine!
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It’s an interesting process Joanne. I’ve looked back on the “previous life” and valued it and the home we had, at that stage of life, raising our daughters. They now have their own homes and we have a new phase. All part of life’s journey. But oh the photos!
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They are special time capsules all of their own!
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An adventure, to move so far-at least it surely would be for me. Glad it has worked out so well–you are brave to just do that– and that you have lightened your load for a different lifestyle.
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Hi Cynthia. Yes it has been an adventure, but I married an Australian, so it was inevitable. Thanks for commenting 🙂
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Ah, makes good sense, for sure!
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Letting go can be so uplifting, generally speaking we all have far too much stuff, though I do tend to be ruthless in getting rid. The hardest things are drawings and cards made by the children and now grandchildren. I gave my children’s art (and photos) to them to decide what to do with it. So far I have hung on to some of the granddaughters’ work, but when they reach 18 they can have them back! Well done on the decision to expand your gap year. Hobart does appear to suit you.
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Hi Jude. It is hard to part with some things, we too have kept kids things. Hobart is now home, I needed this trip back to UK to confirm that. Like you, we have kids on either side of the world, so we are fortunately to have options.
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Photos do seem to be the stumbling block! I have some of Dad’s that just seem to stare back at me and I’m powerless to decide. The digital age is changing things though, for better or worse. 🙂 A permanent move then, Ruth?
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Yes Jo, a permanent move, well for a few years at least.
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