Shedding Season

I may not be a textbook minimalist, but I'm certainly not a maximalist -- and yet I can't believe how many bags and boxes of donations (and trash) have left our home in the past few weeks. It's really shocking to contemplate how much excess we have, despite my regular efforts to cull.

Even before we found out we were moving to Japan, we had plans to purge our belongings. We  downsized before our move last year, but were limited in time and capacity. Marie Kondo's book was a helpful read a few years ago, but it turns out a move to her homeland may be the real life-changing magic for us -- because as it turns out, whether or not an item sparks joy may be a less powerful determiner than "is this tchotchke worth shipping in a container half way around the world?!" 

Here's a picture of a fabulously intricate plant, because it's much
lovelier than the piles of detritus that would more appropriately
accompany this post! Ha!

I discovered Dawn's channel a few months back, and have found it so helpful! I did some decluttering then, but our upcoming move has amplified my motivation. I particularly like how Dawn refers to the things we own as inventory. Which is really putting stuff "in its place," if you will, because it reminds me that everything I own is taking up space in my mind, home, schedule, and budget. 

-- If I misplace something, I feel guilty. Now my mental peace is compromised -- and the more I have that I don't need, the more likely this scenario becomes.

-- If I want to store something properly, I may need to purchase (or improvise) storage. There goes more time and possibly money. And as a military family guaranteed to move multiple times in the future, I will have to handle it and rehome it repeatedly.

-- If I'm going to take care of something, I'll have to spend more time on it. The alternative is not taking care of it, which is bad stewardship -- and definitely something I've been guilty of at times.

Do all of my belongings really deserve a place of honor in my life? "Honor" may sound farfetched, but realistically, my time and attention are precious things that I rarely feel I have enough of! 

Inventory also sounds detached, which is helpful. I'm not terribly sentimental, but it still helps to consider material possessions in the proper light -- things that are valuable only as they serve my family and those around us. Everything we own is temporary, anyway. 

I've tried to grow in this area over the years, so it's not a new concept. I minimized my closet a decade ago. Our four boys share a six-drawer dresser for their clothes, with a few feet of closet rod for their church clothes. I declutter drawers and closets relatively often, and we limit our children's toys and belongings. I think a helpful shift in my mindset has been to start letting go of "potential." We have so many things that we keep because we might use them...one day. It feels wasteful to get rid of perfectly good supplies! But God has always provided for our needs, and it would be better to pass those things on to someone who will actually use them. 

Tandem to this idea is accepting our limitations in this season of life. My husband's job is demanding, and we're homeschooling four kids while wrangling a newly-mobile baby. We just don't have time for every hobby and DIY project right now. While I wish we had more capacity in this area, living beyond our "capacity means" only leads to stress and clutter.

Honestly, I'm finding the thought of moving overseas quite freeing. While I don't relish all of the logistical obstacles, I'm already appreciating the change of perspective it's offering. The word that comes to mind is freedom, which is probably pretty telling. I don't want to spend our time in Japan burdened with unnecessary, self-induced responsibilities. 

Our lifestyle does lend itself to "inventory" -- after all, we're homeschooling bibliophiles with a gaggle of children and a penchant for handicrafts. But less sounds good to me! If I can shed one item for every hair my German "Shedder" is losing right now (currently blowing her coat, yay...), we'll be in good shape by the time the moving truck shows up. *wink* 

On the Move

 When we moved back to the East coast last summer, it felt like coming home; we were finally able to visit with family we'd been separated from for years, and were reunited with dear friends from our last tour in Virginia. Renovations, chicks, vegetable garden -- we wasted no time settling in, knowing that we'd probably be stationed here for several years. 

You can see where this is going, can't you?

We recently learned that it won't be long before we travel to our next duty station: Japan!

I'll admit, my initial reaction to news that we might leave Virginia was less than enthusiastic. An overseas move sounded daunting, but leaving our home and loved ones was even more challenging to contemplate. As the weeks passed, though, my interest grew. I have always wanted to live overseas (though Europe would admittedly be more my style!), and all of our friend who were previously stationed in Japan have loved it. The more we researched, the more excited I became, until I finally feared being disappointed if we ended up staying here! Happily, the wait wasn't long, and we soon had confirmation. 

I have always said that each duty station is exactly what you make of it -- it's not so much the latitude as the attitude, if you will. *wink* But I'm not having to work hard to drum up excitement about this move. I'm also thankful that our children have accepted this sudden shift of plans so gracefully. 

As far as homeschooling goes, this is the opportunity of a lifetime. Being a "3rd Culture Kid" has shaped my life in countless ways; I'm forever grateful for the opportunities to travel that my dad's military career provided. Experiencing other cultures firsthand develops perspective in a unique way, and I'm so happy that my kids will have that opportunity. 

While I sometimes wistfully imagine what it would be like to put down roots, I know that I'd miss the adventure of military life. It certainly reminds us that we are mere pilgrims on this earth; any feeling of being "settled" is ultimately an illusion (albeit a comfortable one!). Home is where our family is.

The timeline of our move is still a bit mind-boggling, as we'll have spent less than 18 months in Virginia. But I can't complain; we've spent over 3 years in every previous duty station, so we've moved far less than many military families. I'm already in major purge mode -- not because we can't take everything with us, but because I don't want to! There's nothing like imagining your possessions being shipped across an ocean to make decluttering decisions easier. Granted, I feel like we just did this (because we did...), but we didn't pare down as much as we would have liked when we moved back east. No time like the present! We have a tendency to bite off more than we can chew when it comes to projects and hobbies (at least for our current stage of life), and I think this assignment will teach us to manage our time and resources better.

It's interesting to look back over the past year and notice little hints that God was dropping -- my sudden obsession with Japanese maples this spring, the kids' spurt of origami a few months back, the book on Japanese castles that my oldest son selected at the thrift store. We had no idea what lay in store, but He did. 

It's hard to believe we're "on the move" yet again, but we're ready for adventure!