EMBRACE EMPTY SPACES

These past months, I have been busy packing to move to our new home. Since I cannot take a lot of stress, I decided to do my packing in stages. 

Right at the beginning, about two months back when renovation work was underway, I went through all the stuff I had in my drawers, cupboards, etc that I didn't think I would need for the next two months. I call them my RARELY USED ITEMS. 

I was able to purge quite a lot of stuff from this category very easily as I wasn't in love with them, didn't really see much use for them and knew that I wouldn't miss them. I had to find new homes for some of them too. So it was good that I started early. 

There were quite a number of things, however, that I didn't use but had sentimental attachment to. I put these in a separate box to decide later about. 

In one box, I put all my replacement items - duplicate things that I might need if what I used presently broke. 

And so I managed to par down my possessions quite a bit. I felt relief, remorse, resolving not to repeat the same mistakes again. 

In the past two weeks, I have started packing my not-so-frequently used items, things I do use but not always, not on a daily basis. These are things I could do without for a short period of time like, say, a month. After that, I would miss having them in my life.  

And so we come to the last week before we leave. The cupboards are bare, the open pantry is almost bare. The shelves I keep my utensils on are also getting bare. My freezer is empty, ready to leave and my fridge is at its bare minimum. We are literally living ONE DAY AT A TIME!

Today, I started crossing out the days to D day on my kitchen calendar. I feel like I am in limbo. My life has just ended and I am waiting for afterlife. When I get up in the morning, I have no fixed routine to do, I cannot fix a meal without thinking of what I will be doing in my new home. 

I am looking forward to using the breakfast table daily for my personal prayer time, then do meal prep later in the morning, sitting on a stool.

I am looking forward to having a bedroom and bathroom all to myself. Its as close as I'll get to staying in a luxury hotel!

I am looking forward to my evening walks, to meeting the village folk  and making new friends. 

I am looking forward to daily morning Mass and noon visits to the Blessed Sacrament chapel. 

I am looking forward to the smell of wood fire burning in my neighborhood. 

As I look around my kitchen, getting 'barer' by the day (as I pack utensils and containers into packing boxes), I realise that I am enjoying the idea of less. I am embracing the EMPTY SPACES and feeling better now than ever before. 

I realise that I will need to purge again once I unpack in order to reach this level of  EMPTINESS. We always have this tendency to fill up empty spaces because we feel it's a waste of space.  

But, EMPTY SPACES can be a source of peace and joy. I see it now that I have reduced my things to ONLY what I do use, love and need on a daily basis.

When I have less to look at, I notice them more. I appreciate them more. I value them more. I look after them more and they last longer. They become so dear to me that I no longer have the desire to throw them away if they get a bit ruined. I lovingly find ways to restore or repair or reuse. And when they get too worn out for all these, I think of ways to repurpose them.  

What about you? Do you have EMPTY SPACES you can embrace? Would you like to have them in your life? Think about it. Try an experiment and find out. Empty out a drawer in your cupboard and leave it empty for a month. Examine how you feel every time you open that drawer and see it empty. EMBRACE the EMPTY SPACE.