The Three Ds

   The past year or so has been a challenging time. Life as we once knew it will be for many of us only a memory as we are now challenged to travel new paths, new roads and possibly new directions. It has forced us consider and reconsider perhaps a series of new priorities in our lives.

   Some of the changes have been difficult and hard to explain or understand. But there are some that may actually help us in the long run. Learning experiences. There are some new trends and on a personal note I call some of them my Three D’s.

   Having spent many days and weeks confined to home, I needed something to do. It gave me time to take a closer look around, scanning each room, closet or corner of the garage. No room here, no more room there. Enter the first D, declutter. Do I really need all this ‘stuff’?  How many white button-down collared shirts do I need, especially since I am retired? How many pairs of shoes? Are 6 suits too many to have at my age?

   But look around the room. It is not just clothes and shoes. Its furniture, pictures, books, mementos from trips and travel. It’s the little things that clutter. And chairs. How many chairs do I really need, especially when I can only sit in one at a time?

  But perhaps as I am getting older and with the children now out on their own, it is not only time to declutter but to give serious thought about downsizing. Do I really need a house with three or four bedrooms and a large yard? Would it make sense to have everything on one floor, including the bathroom and the washer and dryer? How much longer am I really going to be able to navigate the stairs?

   Downsizing, the second D, has become extremely popular these days, thanks to real estate agents and the HGTV television shows. But finding a one-story home can be a real challenge. But at least with my current decluttering frenzy underway, should I find a place, I will have less to pack up, I hope.

   The third D is almost as challenging as the other two. What to do with all this ‘stuff’ I do not need, use and have decided to part with. I just cannot bring myself to take it to the local landfill.

  Over the past few months, we have encouraged the children and grandchildren to come walk thought the house and pick out or label those things they would like to have, items filled with family memories and alike. A few pictures, a book or two, a couple of photo albums and…. that was about it. They tell me they are doing their own decluttering.

    Currently my garage is divided into two sections. Section 1 are items I want to keep even though I have currently put them in the category of ‘decluttered’. Section 2 are those items to donate to a good cause. There are some things I might take to the local auction or for a yard sale. But more likely, I would really like to donate much of what is there, just give it away to someone who might need it or use it or most important, like it.

  It is amazing the things we accumulate over the years, for whatever the reason but often become blind to. But there is a time when it makes some sense to give serious thought about what to keep and what to give away. As my father once said, “You can’t take it with you.” He was right, although he did not necessarily practice what he preached in this case. I ended up with most what he had.

  

 

That Was Then… But This, This Is Now

 

   A couple of years past, a half century ago, I had just graduated from college and was preparing for my first teaching job. We were living in the center of West Virginia at the time, the school deep in the heart of the West Virginia coal mining country.

   The closer it got to the beginning of the school year the more anxious I got. I was young. Was I prepared? Did I have what I needed? Was I smart enough? What resources would be available at the school? Now remember…this was well before computers and other technology was available in schools and life in general. No one had ever heard the term ‘social media’.

   We had recently rented a small second floor somewhat furnished apartment and we were attempting to make it feel more like home when there was a knock on the door. The gentleman standing in the doorway introduced himself and said that he was a World Book Encyclopedia salesman and asked if we would be interested in purchasing a new set of encyclopedias. And, if purchased that day, a free bookshelf would be included at no extra charge. (Some sales tactics never change.)

   After hearing what he had to say and thinking that it might help me as a new, beginning teacher, we decided to purchase the set.  And yes, payment was spread out over 12 months. I had not gotten my first paycheck yet and back then that encyclopedia was pretty expensive.

   Half a century later plus those extra five or so years, who would have thought that I would be able to sit in a comfortable reclining chair in my living room and simply say “Siri, tell me who started the War of 1812” or “Siri, in what year was the Brooklyn Bridge built or who was the first man on the moon?”

   Is there still such a thing, a half a century later, called an encyclopedia or are they just a dusty set of books stored in the basement of the local library or in someone’s garage or attic.

   Seconds, minutes, hours, days, weeks, months, years. decades. These are all ways we measure the passing of time. And then there are the centuries. Time can pass quickly if we allow it. Or sometimes it can just seem to drag on forever.

   The other day while shopping in the local grocery store a young child asked me how old I was. My response was that on my next birthday in September I would be three quarters of a century old. And the child’s response? “Wow. You are really really old.” And believe me, there are some days when I do feel really really old.

   So, which sounds younger. I will be 75 years old on my next birthday or I will be three quarters of a century old on my birthday? Or should I have answered the question by saying that I don’t use an encyclopedia anymore. Did he even know what an encyclopedia was?

   I have been doing a great deal of thinking about what life was like half a century ago as I prepared to enter the classroom to be a teacher. The good news is that can still remember some of what life was like back then.

   And to be honest, there was nothing wrong with picking up volume C of the encyclopedia and look up the history of Civil War. Back in the day, it was how I taught the kids in my classes to do research. It was one of the ways we learned. That was then.

   But today, life is quite different.  I carry this little device in my pocket. It’s called a smart phone and all I have to do is type in a word or ask the phone a question and it responds with all kinds of answers and ideas. Yes, a telephone with a keyboard. Amazing! Back then the telephone had a dial and was wired to the house. It was difficult to even walk across the room. Three feet was about the limit. But that was then. And this is now.

   It’s difficult sometimes to think about the future and how it may affect our lives. Often people sometimes will call it the ‘fear of the unknown’. But if we often reflect back on the ‘then’ in our lives sometimes it can give us strength to face the now. Remember, we have lived through many unknowns before.

   The next time someone asks you how old you are, it may not be the question of when you were born but a question about the life you have lived to get you to where you are today. For me it’s more than just the 75 years. It is three quarters of a century of a life filled with a whole lot of unknowns that have given me some wonderful memories and experiences. Maybe more important, the past can lead us to the way we accept those new challenges that make us the person we are today, regardless of how old in years we may be.