Sippers Writing Circle: Moving

This is a special feature with two of my closest friends, where we all write about a specific topic. The other two writers can be found at liveveloce.wordpress.com and www.killbam.net, for some different perspectives.

To be honest, I don’t have many experiences with moving. I’ve been very stable in my life, having only three major addresses. First is my hometown in Palos Verdes. I then moved to Durant Avenue in Berkeley and lived there for the next ten years, when I decided to move in with my now wife Aki onto Shattuck Avenue in north Berkeley.

Overall, I think moving is a necessary evil in life, one of those things that shakes up life and forces you to pick what’s truly important. It’s also a reflection of mobility, whether you’re moving from one place to a better one, a worse one, or just a sideways jump.

But with even a small set, I have gathered a few tips that make moving a much less painful process:

-Plan ahead

An obvious tip but it’s often surprising how few people do it, or how many people do it badly. As with anything in life, a little organization goes a long way. But keep in mind that this doesn’t mean having a set and inflexible idea of what the move should look like, a common flaw that is just as counterproductive as having no plan at all.

-Label your boxes

A more specific tip and maybe still obvious, but more uncommon than you might think. You may need to be a little more specific than a date on “books”.

-Don’t be afraid to throw stuff away

Home is where the heart is, and people collect a lot of memories from life in any one place. But when you move on, you can’t carry all your memories with you, so don’t be afraid to use the trash can and discard stuff that isn’t very important or doesn’t help you. I’m not advocating a pure functionalism, because sometimes it’s the memorable stuff or the emotional lessons that teach us the most, not just the most useful.