A panoramic view of our former residence reflects a small portion of the expanse of the 1300 plus square feet living space. When we made the decision to downsize and purchase a 800 square foot condo, I can tell by the look in people’s eyes, “Are you nuts?”. Many times I had that same thought go through my head during the two years of waiting for my new condo to be built. The fact that my future home was clearly visible from my living-room window, didn’t help this feeling. It was a daily reminder of questioning whether we made the right decision.
Where did this belief that the bigger things are, the better we are? From meal portions to home living, there is this stigma that the more we have or get, the more successful we are. I’m just as guilty as everyone else. Writing reviews in Tripadvisor, I would make mention of the restaurant’s “generous” portion sizes or the hotel room was “spacious”.
After our initial walk through of our new home, my first feeling was “It’s small.” However, we knew that if we didn’t try living there, we would never know.
We had to change our mindset. We had to sell all our oversized furniture. We had to get rid of all our knickknacks. We had to get rid of all the extra stuff we kept because “just in case we need it.” Do you really need 20 wineglasses?
After all that was said and done, this built up fear dissolved. I became a better person by not wanting or needing things. I became more practical. The second bedroom became our TV/Livingroom instead of a storage room for all those things we kept but never used. We no longer have a formal diningroom which was only used a few times a year. Holiday dinners will now be spent at a local eatery. Our office now resides in our livingroom which is where I spent most of my time anyways. All that extra room made me store all that extra stuff which ended up being an anchor that kept me from making a change.
It reminds me of the time when everything I owned could fit in a small suitcase. I remember feeling free and content then. Now, I know I won’t be able to fit everything in a small suitcase, but I’m sure feeling free and content.
theprosaiczoomer 