What have I done with my stuff?

The thought of packing up and leaving has been in my mind since the autumn of last year. It was not formalized then, just a seed of an idea. I just thought how cool it would be to be a nomad: moving from place to place and working from wherever I happened to be. I thought about getting a van, or a pony and cart. Or, just walk which is what my choice turned out to be.

So, I had to think about what I was going to get rid of and what I needed to keep.  It is much easier for me, as I live alone, so I only have my own belongings to make decisions about. I can’t’ imagine how difficult it might be, if I had a family.

Most of us have clear outs every so often. Throwing out clothes that don’t fit anymore, getting rid of unwanted ‘stuff’ we have accumulated over the years. Discarding those gadgets that we’ve bought on a whim, but have never used. I might even have tried the Marie Kondo idea – the Japanese Art of Decluttering! Very simply put, this is where you look at something and decide if it gives you joy, and if it doesn’t – it can go.

But how many of us have planned to get rid of most of our stuff?

Early on in the planning, I was talking to a good friend of mine who, it turned out, needed some basic furniture for a flat. Perfect. She wasn’t in a rush, and we agreed I’d send pictures of everything I have, and she’d say, “yay or nay”. Therefore, about half of my furniture and a lot of the kitchen equipment is going to her.

I also needed to declutter my clothes, and get rid of things that I didn’t wear, or wasn’t that bothered about losing. But I’m not one for just throwing things away, so I was looking at options to pass things on so they might be used or end up as something else:

• I used Vinted, which I had seen commercials for on TV. I decided to try selling my posh Gucci boots (2 pairs). They sold immediately, and now I’m hunting through the house for more ‘labelled’ items to flog.
• Next, I looked at Facebook Marketplace. This is a great place to advertise bulkier items and sell furniture. The electric piano sold in just two hours. I’m now hoping for luck with the lawn mower…
• Other furniture items will be going to going to local charity furniture shops.
• And finally, the lovely Cotswold village of Cherington has its own show every year, and The Cherington Show this year is happening on 22 July. Everything that is left and of good use is going to be donated to the Show. In the main, that’ll be, trinkets picked up from travels, books, and odds bits of tools and equipment.

And only when all those avenues are exhausted will there be a trip to the Recycling Centre.

That’s what I’m doing. Some people have been really shocked when I’ve told them I’m getting rid of all. And I get it. It’s not easy and it takes a huge amount of time as so many memories are attached to possessions (don’t even get me started on pictures).

Reading some surveys about people discarding stuff – one piece of information I came across, said that a survey found that the average person in the UK owns 76 items of clothing, but throws away 72 each year! I’m not sure I believe that, because that suggests that people only keep 4 items. I know I’ve had some of my clothes for much longer.

Then, looking at information about homeware items, an estimated £2.2 billion worth of homeware items are sent to landfill every year. However, most of these are replacing them with something new.

This suggests that people don’t have a problem about getting rid of specific stuff, but they will do so if they can replace it with something similar, that they like more, or is more up to date.

They might not throw things away if they couldn’t replace them so easily.  We do live in a ‘disposable’ society. And I for one would like to see that change. Mending things, making new things out of old ones. Giving a new lease of life. The planet deserves us to be more mindful about her resources.

My reason for getting rid of nearly all my things is that I’m not planning to come back. I want the freedom to be able to walk, uncluttered, unattached, unbound. 

I could, of course, put things into storage. That would be sensible if I planned to come back to the area, or at least within a drivable distance. But I don’t know if that’s going to happen. I might end up in France. Or Italy. Or just keep walking. Until I find that place that speaks to me and says “stay”.

And I’m making the decision to walk, because I want to do something for myself, be completely independent, and have an epic adventure.

What I’m doing with stuff, is what needs to be done, for me to fully embrace my walk.

If you’d like to have a discovery session with me, the Wanderlust Coach, please book yourself in here: https://wanderlustcoach.as.me/schedule

Please sign-up to my newsletter to follow my journey and receive news straight to your inbox www.thewanderlustcoach.com.