Moving

I took a gap year after I graduated high school. I packed up my childhood home where I grew up and moved to Georgia. I moved two weeks after I graduated. I was in for a year full of unfamiliarity and a form of isolation. I didn’t know anyone, I was sick, I wasn’t in school, I babysat two adorable kiddos, I slept a lot and played with my two dogs. Fourteen months later, I was packing up again, but this time to go to school. Which brings us here.

There’s nothing quite like packing up all of your stuff, moving hundreds or even thousands of miles away from home, calling a new place home, adjusting to culture, routine, and lifestyle; living at this new home for 9 months, and then packing up everything again, putting 80% of your belongings into storage for three months, just to come back and unpack.

Moving. Packing. It’s stressful. We have too much stuff. Life feels cluttered and chaotic. Useless knick-knacks collecting dust, articles of clothing that haven’t been worn in six+ months, that pair of tennis shoes that you bought three pairs ago. There’s just so much stuff. The process makes us declutter. It makes us simplify our lives. It makes us feel refreshed. It makes us feel lighter.

Living across the country from home - whether home be where I am for 9 months or three months - is a strange concept. It feels uncertain and uncomfortable. It’s hard and confusing. There’s complications and conflicts. It’s scary and intimidating.

But it’s also beautiful and life changing. It’s strengthening and life giving. It’s motivating and fun. It’s different in the best ways possible. It’s exciting and eye-opening.

Going to school out of state this year was the best thing I ever could have done for myself. I needed to challenge myself in a way that I’d never been challenged before. I needed to prove to myself that I am capable. I needed to leap outside of my comfort zone, no more baby steps. My heart is happy, and while it isn’t always, this year taught that even when my heart isn’t happy presently, I have the power within myself to do something about it. This year taught me that I get to choose when my heart is going to be happy, and that is going to be as much as possible. This year I regained my independence, I regained perspective, I regained connection and community.

While it’s true that your first year at college is always a huge year, I believe that for me personally, the pivotal moments that made this year so life-giving and life-changing were just a little bit greater than the average first-year university student.

I connected with a couple of brands that I absolutely adore and have inspired me to pursue something that doesn’t even exist right now. I declared my major and added a minor. I have a clearer understanding as to what I want out of my career. I am better equipped to deal with crises and conflict. I have new standards for myself and I have released most expectations for the future. I accept uncertainty. I allowed people to help me, which is rare. I became vulnerable so that I could become stronger. I let my guard down so that I could rebuild my foundation. I have a second family that I know I can turn to for anything and everything. I am tough-love. I have given myself permission to be selfish. I remain selfless.

As a 20-year-old who has a chronic illness, type 1 Diabetes, moved to Georgia, took a gap year, moved to Washington, completed one year of undergraduate education, and moved back to Minnesota, I feel that I have a fairly broad perspective on various aspects of life. Therefore, I feel qualified to make this statement: as exhausting and awful as packing, moving and unpacking is, it’s life-changing. There are things that you cannot learn without moving and traveling (and that's a topic for another day).

Finding the silver lining to a difficult situation makes you grow, it gives you leverage, and makes you think with a more open heart.

Do what makes your heart happy.

#positivelifestyle #goodlife #declutter #moving #happyheart