I have been an avid shopper now for about 5 decades. When I was a young girl, at Christmas time, I would pour over JCPenney and Avon catalogs carefully earmarking pages and looking for the perfect gifts for my family and friends. Now, where ever I go, I am on the hunt for unique gifts. Sometimes, I buy things without knowing who it belongs to. That gift goes into a basket in my closet until I figure out who it was meant to live with. My daughters don’t look in the basket anymore- good thing, there are things in there I’ve been holding on to for years.
When my family of origin was able to go on a family road trip, my mother always bought souvenirs, even if it was to North Dakota. That is a habit I have enjoyed for my entire life, bringing back souvenirs for family, friends and now for me. Even today, on Christmas morning, Santa leaves an array of gifts from “his” travels throughout the year- to include gifts like French perfume, college gear from a distant-out of State University, jewelry from around the world, boomerangs, etc. Our adult daughters and the love of my life still get up early to see what Santa has brought them.
As you have read, I have had the joy of raising 2 daughters. That means having the tenacity to be a good shopper is mandatory. The memories of being woken up at 3:30 a.m. by tweeners on Black Friday mornings is a badge of honor for me- it also solidified my caffeine addiction.
As I look in my kitchen/living room, the traveler in me has so much joy. I see a plate from Spain, a colorful ceramic fish from Mexico on the wall, a magnet of dot art from the Outback of Australia on the refrigerator and an oil painting from St. Maarten as a focal point above the fire place. If you came to my house, you might think my themed rooms are out dated decor techniques. I would tell you, they are eclectic and I am not a fan of the new sleek/modern décor of the 21st century. Truth is, I love the new sleek style, I’m just not ready to give up my daily dose of souvenirs and how they remind me of all the joy I have had traveling.
Now to minimalization. My ingenious, although somewhat delusional plan, was to dump all of my treasures on my daughters. Surely they would love all these treasures and trinkets as much as I do. I asked them to go room to room to identify what they would want for their very own home decor. I crafted my plan even more deviously by saying I could store things for them until they had their own house. Ha! They are millennials and because of their college debt, it’s not even in their wheel house right now to own a house. One of them fully committed to taking enough that would fit in a shoe box. The other wouldn’t even commit! Good for them for shattering my delusions. They need to create their own memories, not hold on to their mother’s.
Drat- plan failed. Now what…..
When I wander through my home and look at the walls, in the closets, dresser drawers and oh my goodness, the dreaded basement, I’ve had to give myself some long pep talks. As the saying goes, you can’t take it with you and, as you saw above, my kids don’t want it. Since I am living with the reality of Mac D, for me, at some point in my life, I won’t be able to see any of these things. With my new reality in play, I have started to assess, room by room, -do I really need this? What value is it, especially if I can’t see it or use it? When I’m shopping and I spy something- like a pair of cute shoes (oh, now there’s an obsession), I have started saying to myself- do you REALLY need that? Save your money for some far away exotic land, that road trip, a good cause, etc.
In the hopefully near future, when the love of my life and I downsize so we can go on the 2- year- see all the National parks trip-, I’m sure I have mentally prepared myself to keep only the most precious items. It will only be the material goods that are truly useful, necessary, or they spark the most beautiful and joyous memories. Then, when my vision starts to deteriorate, I will do this process all over again.
I see a yard sale or a trip to Goodwill in my future soon.
What did you see today.
Janice Ekholt 4/29/19
A Traveler's Journey to Blindness 