I had it all wrong

"Out with the old and in with the new," has been my motto lately. I find myself tired of the excess in my life. As a result, I have donated or thrown out everything I don't need. This process has taken on several phases. First, I pulled out everything I didn't think I needed or wanted. At first, I wasn't able to get rid of them because I thought, "what if I need it later?" So I held onto those bags of excess clothing. Months went by and I completely forgot what was in those bags. Now I find myself ready to move and I've come across these bags. Inspired by my forgetfulness I divide my belongings into thirds. One to be donated, another to be thrown out, and the last third to be moved to our new home.

I can't get enough of it. I want to get rid of everything I don't need. I know we'll be moving again and I don't want to carry around extra baggage. I've gone through my clothing, decorations, and furniture. I even attacked on my toiletries. I made myself use all my shampoos, conditioners, body washes/scrubs and lotions. Surprisingly, it only took a week to go through all those bottles. Granted, I was showering 2-3 times a day (I would work out twice a day). Of course, there are some items that aren't "purgeable" such as books and cookware. These items are too valuable to me and my husband. Well, that might not be completely true. The husband has been known to complain about moving my books around the country. Perhaps that has something to do with the fact that I packed the majority of my books in two very large boxes. What can I say? I was helping him work out....

All I want to do is get rid of things I don't need. These things are material things that fade with fashion. This purging has got me to thinking about what's important in life. To me that's relationships. People don't fade. They are the lasting relationships of our lives. My mother once told me that a good friend was hard to find and if I find it, don't let go. I've taken that to heart. I admit, I'm not confrontational with my friends. Sometimes, I think I should be but I value their friendship to a fault. People are really important to me. I admit in the past I haven't been good at expressing that. I guess I didn't know how. I've had a lot of growing up to do.

As I gear up to leave in a couple of months I can't help but think about all the friends I'm leaving behind, again. Since moving to the Pacific Northwest I have had the pleasure of making some really great friends. They have taught me so much and I'm grateful for them. My friend Mary, for example, is such an encouragement to me. She is the prime example of what we as Christians should be. Of course, she's not perfect but that's what makes her great. She tries. For one thing, I'm so different from her but she still loves me. She's a great friend and running partner.

As the story of my adult life goes, I will move again. When I moved here last year I prayed that I would make friends again. I know people who move around alot but don't let them get close to the people they meet. They'll enjoy the moment and then move on without looking back. I've been sadden by those relationships. I still love them. I only wish they would've opened up more. I can only learn from this and move on myself. So I prayed that God would bless me with real friends and He has every step of the way.

Now I'm moving on again and I don't know if I'll move back here. I honestly don't think I will. That's sad because I've come to love my friends here, particularly my bible study ladies. I'm not really good with keeping up with my friends. I need to work on that. I feel like I've let my friends down by not keeping up with them, especially my friends from Maryland. I think of them often and I see them on Facebook. For people like me, Facebook is great. I see what's going on with the friends I met along the way and still feel like I'm a part of their life. But really I'm not, but it's the best I can do.

To those of you who I have known and love, I still love you and miss your company.  I hope you haven't been offended by my lack of contact. I pray God's blessing in your lives. I'm sure we'll have reunions and get togethers in the future. And I can't wait to see you all!