Change

I am going to be predictably boring and lament the fact that it's now July. JULY! The speed that time whizzes by never ceases to amaze me.

Of course, I had to check the calendar (word of the day one - today's word? Wormhole) because looking outside you wouldn't know it was midsummer. It feels like we had a very short spring and then have fast forwarded to autumn.

I have managed to waste a whole morning doing not very much when in fact I should be doing Lots of Important Things. So it goes. There is much physical stuff to sort out here as we emptied our entire loft at the weekend in preparation for building work.

Yes, that sentence does strike fear in my heart. Being surrounded by boxes upon boxes (containing things pertaining to camping, Christmas and memories) has had a bit of an unsettling effect on me.

I don't work well amid chaos. Some order is essential for sanity. Plus, rifling through lots of old things (who knew me and Hubby had exchanged SO MANY love letters) is a bit like waving your hand into a crystal clear rock pool. There are some gems to be had but mostly you can't see clearly because everything's been muddied.

There is a lot of detris floating around, mostly centering around lost opportunities and people. I'm sure things will settle down soon. I just never imagined getting rid of stuff would really have such an effect.

It's funny, I've been thinking, how life changing events seem quite innocuous at the time but it's only on looking back that you realise their impact on your life, of roads taken as a result of that small event.

And so it happened with me back in March. Around the time, I think, that I stopped blogging here and generally fell out of love with the whole shebang.

Now here I am plotting the next five or six years of my life, something that is so alien to me. I am hoping my future will include university. Which one and doing what has still to be decided but it's exciting and scary in equal measure.

Comments

[Chris]

I can really relate to your post. My husband is sorting through his parents house, they both very sadly passed away recently, and he is finding so many things that are conjuring up memories, both happy and sad. A painful thing to do, you find things you neither want to keep or throw away either! Deep breaths and plough on me thinks! University! How exciting!

[allotmentmum]

We did excatly the same thing a few weeks ago - cleared out the loft in preparation for building work (subject to planning permission and objections by delightful neighbours.)
It did feel odd recycling years of essays, cards, and memories of life before kids, but amazing how soon you move on, and hey, the future's more exciting than the past. Good luck.

[Helen]

Oh big plans looming. I did a degree through the Open University which worked very well with young children but it took six years. You need to anticipate having to find 7-10hrs a week to study.

I have moved twice since 2000 so I am quite brutal in clearing out stuff - you need to keep the important memories but be realistic about what you actually need. It is quite liberating once you get going

[girlwithaspade]

Still such a wonderful, refreshing blog. The type of posts I like to sit down with a cup of tea or glass of wine and read. Keep it slow, meaningful and write for yourself at your pace :-)

[colleen]

My first degree was with the Open University - what a wonderful institution it is (second only to the NHS!) I completed it while working full time, but had to have a break when my son was small. Perhaps it's time I cleared out the last few OU study guides I have kept!

Good luck with juggling a busy family life and studying, no mean feat. It will be worth it.

[Rainbow Prams]

I have a feeling the fact that Autumn has descended earlier than expected, that this may have inspired us to look around and sort out! I did exactly the same a couple of weeks ago and gutted the house and got rid of tons of things, but while rummaging through all this stuff, it too had a rather reflective effective on me. I too thought of days gone by and where I currently am with life, to be honest I'm still trying to tackle that question! xx

[Mrs Sutton]

I'm a few posts late, but I'm so glad to find you writing again! I've always felt a connection with your ramblings on this and your other, (shorter lived but equally as inspiring) blog. I recently had to clear out my house for a photoshoot - I piled up so many things that i didn't care about (binned) and a lot more things that made me laugh, smile or cry (put into bags at the back of my car, and have stayed there ever since!) Some things I find myself questioning why I've kept, but yet I still feel reluctant to let go of them - and magazines - why in the hell do I need to keep hold of magazines? I vowed that I would streamline my life when I moved house nearly three years ago, but it seems that one can move location easily, but changing the habits of a lifetime...not so easy.
Delighted to be reading you again.
Paula x

[wildcraft diva]

Included a link to rosehip post, hope that's ok. Thank's for sharing :)
http://wildcraftvita.blogspot.it/2012/10/rosehip-collection-25-things-to-do-with.html(sorry couln't leave it there)