Purging

As I've already shared, my time in New Hampshire is coming to an end. At the end of the summer I'll be loading all my belongings into my Subaru and relocating to Chicago. Unfortunately, this means I won't be able to take certain things with me. For starters, I won't be bringing my ultra-comfy Lay-Z-Boy recliner or the dresser in my bedroom. Although I hate to leave behind such nice pieces of furniture, knowing that I'm limited on what I can bring feels almost liberating.

When we "detox" our bodies, we deprive our selves of food for a period of time. We starve our bodies so we can get all the bad stuff out. We go without so we can be healthier--so that we can have more life.

Instead of lamenting all that I must leave behind, I'm seeing this as an opportunity to purge my life of this "creeping materialism" that I always seem to be battling. This move is forcing me to decide what's really important in my life and what is not. I guess you could say I'm "detoxing" my life of materialism.

It's only March, and yet, I'm already pulling unworn clothes from my closet and making a mental list of other things I can give away or put on Craigslist. I'm almost to the point of making a game out of it to see how much I can get rid of.

In the future, I hope I don't have to rely on a major relocation to make me aware of how much I have, and instead, do a better job of discerning which possessions are good and useful in my life and which things are unnecessary.