Movers — Let's Have An Adventure

We moved to Tokyo with two boxes. The size of a refrigerator. Big. The kind your kids would go crazy for. They would contain our whole life.

That excited me back then. To sell things. To give things away. We were going to be Minimalists. We didn’t need things to be happy. We were going to be together and gather priceless memories. Collectors of moments.

We rented the smallest storage unit you could rent. We filled it with high school photo albums, a fake Xmas tree and a rake. Steve insisted on keeping his queen-size mattress from college and an old IKEA table just in case we had to move back with nothing. I didn’t fight it cause I know it made him feel safe.

Then last week the movers came to survey our Tokyo apartment to move back to Minnesota. We were supposed to only have two boxes again, but we asked for four. They agreed and I felt good.

I toured them around our apartment, proud of how strong I was telling them that I wasn’t going take anything in our family room except the paintings, the rug and the TV. The kitchen was just dishes and cutlery. Then to the guest room, only the monitor. Our room was just our clothes. Then the boys room to show them their stuffed animals, books, toys, blankets, pillows, art projects and one bicycle. Ok, lots from the boys room, but it is theirs! Then they sat me down and said we had too much. That with the little I wanted to take, we were still 30% over.

I bit my lip. Told them I understood and I would figure it out.

Then I cried.

To leave Minneapolis to move here felt thrilling. To be ripped away from a life you don’t want to leave and being told you can’t bring your things hurts.

Through my tears I told Steve, they can’t tell Chase he can’t bring his blankies. Yes, he has six, but he sleeps with them all! When we told the boys we were leaving, we reassured them that it wasn’t like traveling. It was a real move and they could bring all their things. “My blankies?” Chase asked. “Yes,” I said. “My stuffies?” Chase asked. “Yes,” I said. “Our plants?” Chase asked. I explained that the plants couldn’t come. And he got up and hugged the plants and started to cry. I told him that every single one of our plants we got from a friend who had lived here and left. That the plant he was hugging was Kerri and the one next to him was Jo. He told me he wanted to bring one to Nozawa Onsen to give to Rowie and it could sit in the spot were she makes tea before yoga class because it is peaceful and she could name it Chase.

If I am being honest, I didn’t want to say goodbye to my things either. I thought that if I set up our living room in Minnesota to look like our living room in Tokyo, the same life would unfold. We would feel the same. Be the same. Maybe even pretend nothing had changed.

So, Steve asked for more boxes. And they said yes. They came back yesterday and as I toured them through I told them I wanted to bring everything. Every. Last. Thing.

We will be without it all for 3-5 months, as it makes its way to us in Minnesota. But it will be ours. I know our life will be different. And as we move into our new life, so much of it will go. But emotionally, it is what I need right now. I just to need to hang on.

But Steve, you were right. Glad you kept that old queen-sized mattress & IKEA table in storage. We will be needing it after all…