Simplify your days to reclaim your joy.
The weekend was simultaneously wonderful, and very busy.
Ohio State beat Michigan, which feels like the universe handing out a small, well-timed victory snack. Add in the fact that we shoveled what seemed like several metric tons of snow and packed a million boxes. One would hope things might settle down.
They have not. Because today is moving day, a thrilling tradition in which humans voluntarily carry heavy objects from one perfectly good building to another.
I also want to say thank you for your patience these past few weeks. Life has been a bit like trying to fold a fitted sheet while juggling. Technically possible, but only if you ignore several laws of physics.
In the middle of all this, moving keeps teaching me three essentialist truths. First, you do not truly own your stuff until you have lugged it across a driveway in winter. There is something about cold air and cardboard boxes that makes you question every purchase you have ever made.
Second, once you touch everything you own, you suddenly see which things matter and which things were quietly plotting to occupy every corner of your home until the end of time. It is amazing what clarity comes from simply picking items up and asking, “Why are you still here?”
And third, the more you release, the lighter you feel. Physically, mentally, and occasionally spiritually, depending on how many trips you have made up the stairs.
So while I am hauling boxes, coordinating contractors, and starting to turn our new house into a home, I am carrying these reminders with me…
Simplify what you can.
Carry only what matters.
Let the rest stay behind.
It is not glamorous, but then again, neither is moving. And yet here we are, learning anyway.
Stay warm, and stay well. Talk more soon.
Yours in Simplicity,
