Three months ago we moved from a hotel-like manse in a new subdivision to a little Bungalow in the village with undatable trees, a dubious porch swing, a 100 year old coal burning firebox, drop-dead gorgeous woodwork, and very drafty windows. The building in the back which is passed off as a garage was probably built for a Model-T. Our cars sit in the snow. I gave up a dishwasher and unfillable storage for hardly any counter space and ugly dark brown kitchen cabinets. There was no place for food so I went to an antique store and bought an 18th Century pine cupboard complete with square nails and a bad refinish job. This replaces half the pantry space. I find bats in the house (alive and dead) and the faucets occasionally refuse to give up their water.
It’s difficult to describe these changes without sounding like I’m whining. After all, who wants to give up the 7 ft wide Christmas tree because it doesn’t fit in the new 3ft space? Our lives change. And the things we consider beautiful and even necessary are no more. And we live a different way. With limits.
Something you might not guess about me is that I absolutely love old houses! It’s not the loss of a big and new house I struggle with. You can have that! It’s all about the limits!Not enough food space means shopping differently and even eating differently.
Six months ago I loathed the big mortgage payment that enabled us to have all that pantry space and convenience. And I pined for the big oaks down Johnson Street! An old house was all I could think of. In fact, for 2 years I prayed that God would take us out of that nasty new subdivision with no trees. In the summer months I would take little drives all by myself just to meander through the village to look at the houses. It was the Spring of 2006 when I finally poured my heart out to The Lord. “Why?! Lord? Why have you given me such a love for old houses and forced me to live in a new one?!” He heard me and our house was on the market in 4 months!
The one thing I hate to admit is that now that I’m living with so much less, I’m ashamed about what I thought I needed. You see, with the exception of a few inescapable problems, (like no functioning toilet for 3 days) it really is working out quite well here. We don’t absolutely need a garage. (David works at home) And I can paint cabinets (soon!). Washing every dish by hand has been a catalyst to seeing need in my parenting. And I’ve actually found that having 8 boxes of cereal is not a necessity! In fact, I’ve given up buying cold cereal altogether (for now). The kids are eating hot cream of wheat and oatmeal in the mornings. It’s not only cheaper but way better for them! You see what I mean about limits…they force us to live differently. But who says different is bad? Honestly, the less I have, the less I seem to need! There’s freedom in not having things!
This summer we’ll empty our two storage lockers and have a couple of garage sales. We’ll find a good home for the big Christmas tree and sell the furniture that doesn’t fit. I suppose it will be a while before the bat population is reduced (One flew into David’s head a few weeks ago). And I’ll paint my old pine cabinet white to match the others. I’ll take more walks in the village and turn into my very own village driveway. We’ll keep having fires in the fireplace (like the one that’s burning now). Maybe that porch swing will work after all! And the best thing of all, the unexpected thing, is that life is actually getting better! Who would have thought?!
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Yes, we bought an old house. And we have less! What a privilege!
5 comments:
Well said my friend... all the 'extra' is just heavy baggage, more to heat/cool, more to clean, more to organize, more to decorate, more to repair, more to mow, more more more...it begs of our attention to the inanimate when the greatest fulfillment really comes from paying attention to the animate! I find myself trying to de-clutter my own life... always trying to part with more and more of the inanimate-- but what about those 'things' that bring so much joy and pleasure but I never have time for? Like the guitar, the dulcimer, the sewing machine. What do we hold closely in the hopes of 'someday' having the time when what I really want to do is have coffee with a friend, sit on the porch swing and discuss the world, go for a long walk... where do I draw the line? That is my conundrum...
Again- I guess we have the priveledge of even asking those questions! Many people can't.
Someday I'd like to write about that old topic- "How do we measure wealth?" Seems like we Americans have the burden with the blessing of keeping from destroying ourselves with 'too much.' I have so much to learn!! And I'm 45 already! Thanks so much for writing with me Ski!
One can never have too many books!
You and Mrs. OG would get along just fine. Next time TSM comes to my town you should tag along. We've done some interesting things with our old "smaller" space.
I'm in the exact same boat except we paid $70,000 more for the dump I currently live in. I had a master bedroom with a walk in closet and bathroom, vaulted ceilings, a huge kitchen, 2 car garage. Now I have not one bathroom that is functioning or remodeled, no closet space, everything is in dire need of repair. All because my husband wanted to live in an area that you could walk to a coffee shop. I have a newborn too and had to move twice (once when I was 7 months pregnant and then again when the baby was a month)....all to accommodate my husband. I could just cry. I would love this place if it were less money, but it is more and we have much, much less.
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