Sunday Scribbling-What I Carry
The older you get, the more baggage you carry, and I mean that literally and figuratively. From bags under my eyes, to saddlebags on my thighs, my physical burden can be pretty tough to tote sometimes.
Emotionally - well, yeah, that gets heavy too.
I think I'm carrying around quite a few "woulda, shoulda, coulda's" in my emotional handbag - I suspect we all are. They're buried pretty deeply down there, along with the loose change, the ATM receipts, and used up chewing gum discarded into wadded up bits of Kleenex.
Everything from "shoulda stopped at the grocery store on the way home, 'cuz we're almost out of milk," to "coulda had enough money for a trip to France if we hadn't bought that second house in Florida." They're all there, and they rattle around a lot, particularly on long drives alone in the car and in the wee hours of the morning when everyone else is asleep.
But something else I've noticed about getting older - I'm getting better at throwing stuff away, especially stuff I know I've outgrown and won't be using anymore. It doesn't do me any good to keep carrying those regrets around. It's kind of like those size four pants hanging uselessly in the back of my closet - they're just painful to look at, so toss them into the rummage sale bag.
Why carry any more burdens than you have to, right? But hand over some excitement, some new dreams, some great plans, and I'll happily fill my emotional carry-all with those. That's the kind of baggage I'm looking for now.
for more carry on's go here
Emotionally - well, yeah, that gets heavy too.
I think I'm carrying around quite a few "woulda, shoulda, coulda's" in my emotional handbag - I suspect we all are. They're buried pretty deeply down there, along with the loose change, the ATM receipts, and used up chewing gum discarded into wadded up bits of Kleenex.
Everything from "shoulda stopped at the grocery store on the way home, 'cuz we're almost out of milk," to "coulda had enough money for a trip to France if we hadn't bought that second house in Florida." They're all there, and they rattle around a lot, particularly on long drives alone in the car and in the wee hours of the morning when everyone else is asleep.
But something else I've noticed about getting older - I'm getting better at throwing stuff away, especially stuff I know I've outgrown and won't be using anymore. It doesn't do me any good to keep carrying those regrets around. It's kind of like those size four pants hanging uselessly in the back of my closet - they're just painful to look at, so toss them into the rummage sale bag.
Why carry any more burdens than you have to, right? But hand over some excitement, some new dreams, some great plans, and I'll happily fill my emotional carry-all with those. That's the kind of baggage I'm looking for now.
for more carry on's go here
Labels: Sunday Scribbling
posted by Becca at Saturday, November 17, 2007
10 Comments:
Somehow we never learn to shed that excess baggage.
Our minds don't let us...
I LOVE the positivity in this post.
You hit the nail on the head with this one! I'm at the same point in my life; trying to simplify and getting ready for retirement. We also just bought a home in Florida. More bills and responsibilities to carry. But, slowly, we're letting go of the ones up north and I can feel my internal purse filling up with hopes and dreams for our non-working lives. ~Linda
It's refreshing to hear how you have dealt with and let go of the baggage that accumulates with time. And of course, it's exciting to know that you're open to collecting new and happy experiences. You conveyed these thoughts so beautifully. xo
Great post, Becca! This is one of those universal things that everyone seems to suffer from! Thanks!!
Great post! I, too, am looking for a pot of new dreams and remade plans!
Baggage comes no matter what - it's part of being human. I mean being bound by time and space - who can avoid it?! You can't do this and that, be here and there. But like you say, we can start to come to terms with that fact and throw some of it over the side of the ship.
I almost went down this path when responding to this week's prompt...so glad you did.
Something we all struggle with I'm sure. Like the positive outlook of your post.
i have found that my baggage use to be very heavy and burdensome. as i went through life i lost baggage that once carried while changing flights and going on new adventures and never felt the need to go to baggage claim to get them. now i feel like the baggage i carry is small and fits "neatly under the seat infront of me". and its also cute, matching and monogrammed...making me feel like it is less of a burden and more of something i will carry with me forever...and that kind of baggage ain't so bad huh?
basically i can relate...that was the connecting flight to my point.
Wonderful piece, Becca. I recognise bits of it - and am certainly in the shedding/letting go phase physically; emotionally it's not always so easy.
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