The debt of “stuff”

I’ve been in a funk today, I blame the dreary weather and post-vacation blues.  Thinking a lot about what it’s going to take to downsize.  I just don’t know what to do with all the stuff!  I’m thinking we’ll clear out the few things that have real sentimental value, one thing that comes to mind is our huge painting that was in Bryan’s grandparents’ house.  It’s been gorgeous hanging on the living room wall. It will go back to Joplin with Bryan’s dad.  I want to have a very small collection of those things though because sooner or later we’ll be dealing with them again.  I don’t want a storage unit.   There are some things we’ll need to keep and will be useful on the road.  Some tools, Katelyn’s favorite toys, some kitchen stuff, personal items we’ll move into our RV.  After that we still have lots of nice things that are meaningful, but we can’t keep them. We’ll pass them out to family if they want them and after that I’d like to have an open house and invite all our friends, for a free walk through.  Take what you want! I’d like it if some nice things went to friends.   Then a rummage sale with plenty of free stuff or box deals.  And after that donate or trash the rest.  The less stuff I have to physically remove from the house myself, the better.  I cleared out a lot when we moved to our house but that was 8+ years ago!  We’ve since had a child and accumulated a ton of stuff. It’s definitely overwhelming.  We have not purged much in those 8 years.  This is what “the debt of stuff” means.  At some point you have to deal with all of the stuff you have accumulated.  We’d still be doing this even moving to a different house.  Moving into a much smaller space makes it harder though.  I find it interesting that at this point I’m more stressed out about the process of downsizing than I am about getting rid of my stuff.  I’m not worried I’ll miss it.  I won’t.  I just don’t know what to do with it!  I want a simpler life with more experiences and less things.  I know there will be things that will be harder to part with but I’m ok with it, I want to explore.  We’ve been in Missouri too long!  I cried again this year on our way home from vacation out west.  8 hours driving East through Kansas gives you lots of time to think.  I’m so ready to move on but we have to downsize before we can move on. That is the hard part.