DOWNSIZING
If you have ever moved from a large house which you have occupied for a decade or two, to a smaller home, you know a thing or two about the condition known as “downsizing”.
It is widely touted in some circles as being a beneficial thing enabling us to rid our ourselves of useless encumbrances which we have accumulated though years of senseless slavery to your idea of what the so-called work ethic might be.
In truth, when economic or social makes it necessary that we effectively destroy the patina which has been forming on and within our accomplishments. Living a life well is a work of art.
I can tell you some of the things you will miss after you have downsized your life by physical relocation in smaller quarters. I cannot set up a rating system which might determine which seems to be the worst, or most missed. They have different levels of intensity at various times.
Near the top of such a list I would place the item: books.
In truth I don' really know how many books we had accumulated. I do remember that years ago a carpenter asked me how many selves we needed to hold our books at that when we were up sizing homes. He seemed shocked when I said: “about thirty-five or forty feet”. He did a good job of transforming the room with shelves deep enough to hold two layers of books plus cabinets underneath to house out-sized items, maps, scrapbooks, newspapers, art work, and other such specialized items. Our old walnut, glass enclosed Globe -Wernicke bookcases were isolated upstairs to cover one wall of a bedroom. with books. They stood four high on end platform drawers and three in the center. On the walls were paintings my wife had done - my second treasure missed now that we have downsized two times.
A few remain in our house now, yet in our form of down-sizing they aren't really gone in many cases. We invited all of the children in the family to take what they wanted from the books, the art work and other possessions and we were pleased that so much of what we held dear and worthy was deemed to be of special value to our children, grandchildren and our great-greats through their parent's selections. Rather than downsizing, we avoided negative connotations as we broadened the setting in which our treasures from yesterday may be better displayed and best used to the advantage by our greatest of all items of true wealth - our children, and by their loved ones in turn.
We have haven' really downsized - we have simply moved much of it around to a broader family base. To see them enjoying the items they chose is a special value in itself which can in be gained in no other way.
A.L.M. June 30, 2004 [c484wds]
