I am so sad

[lillypaddle]

and yet, I am happy to be retiring and moving to Kentucky to be near my son and his wife and my GRANDBABY!

But I have all this "stuff." Original artwork, antiques ... really cool shit. This stuff isn't, unfortunately, my kid's stuff or desire. I have battled with that. You kidding me? You don't want the 1915 dining room set that is hand painted, a floral design on the doors??? Cherry wood? You don't want my "spirit doll" sculpture that hangs by the door, keeping good spirits in, keeping bad spirits out? Oh. Man. It is a hard realization, that the things I love have become the things I need to get rid of.

Ah. Things hang heavy 'round my neck. My memories have become an albatross. So, I'll sell them for a quarter to you, just so I can get out of here. I thought they were my legacy. Fuck. Fuck that shit. In the end, I guess it doesn't matter. What matters is I will touch my granddaughter. I will be near her. My stuff ... well, it is just "stuff" and it will be enough.

[haikugal]

1. Hi Lilly

Are you moving in with them or deciding what to take? If you're deciding what to take then I'd include things you love even if no one else wants them.

Congrats on being near your granddaughter!

[grasswire]

2. remember, Lily, that if you need help determining value of something...

....we have a DU forum where buyers and sellers read and post and sometimes offer advice.

Best wishes!

[lillypaddle]

4. Really? I didn't know that ...

thanks, I'll look for it. Thanks for your good wishes!

[lillypaddle]

3. No, I'm not moving in with them

I'm moving into an apartment nearby. Well, it's a matter of room for the things I love - so I'll have to settle for the room in my heart for my kids. It should be enough. Thanks for the encouragement. Just feeling nostalgic.

[haikugal]

14. OK....

In that case while it's hard but it gets easier. I've been downsizing for quite a while. Over and over. I finally came to the understanding that it's just stuff, and I enjoyed it but needed to practice letting go. That has been my mantra for quite a few years now...let it go and get going. To be honest I don't miss it. Good luck to you with this new phase of life. You're going to be fine.

I'm glad you could come here and talk about it.

Best wishes!

on edit...
I love Rugs video...on point!!

[lillypaddle]

24. Thanks,

I know you're right.

[Barack_America]

5. Sounds like an estate sale would be perfect for you.

[Uben]

6. I know its just "stuff"....

....but all that stuff has a memory attached, and I suppose that's the part we hate to give up. My wife died a couple of years ago and now I am living in this huge old house (4000 sq ft) jam packed with stuff. Antiques from her grandmother and mother, and all the stuff she accumulated while she was living. She was a stained glass artist, and I have a lot of beautiful art pieces hanging all over the house. I cherish them all because they all have a memory. But, in reality, its just stuff, and eventually it'll all have to go.

[grasswire]

7. the upside is...

.....that the "stuff" will go to gladden the heart of someone new, some day. Whenever I find a special something at an estate -- something that obviously has been cherished -- I am really grateful. I'm thinking of a flow blue lidded jar that I found, imperfect and very well used. I love it, and every time I see it I remember the home it came from.

So when there's an estate sale not only does the family raise some money, but the sale managers make some money, the pickers make some money, and the collectors gain too. It's like the items have life again.

[Uben]

17. I've done estate sales....

...have a good lady friend who has an estate sale business. I"ve helped her out at a few of them. I've even done one myself, for a good friend who lived too far away to manage selling her moms stuff. So I've had the opportunity to go through a house and see what it tells you about the deceased and the life they lived. The downside is, it is one hell of a lot of work!

[2naSalit]

9. I had to do that about ten years ago

but for other reasons. Even though it was harder than I thought it would be, I managed to get through it by telling myself that I was recycling the items from albatross to cash. I had a house before and lots of antiques and cool stuff too. But I needed to get rid of all that stuff, it was becoming an issue of mental health. I had to resolve the issue of stress over how I was going to store and protect valued things or transfer them to someone who would take better care of them and enjoy them as much as I had, maybe more than I had.

You'll get through it and after a few happy events with your family, you won't miss those things much at all.

[Uncle Joe]

10. George Carlin had a nice take on "stuff."

Thanks for the thread, lillypaddle.

[lillypaddle]

25. I remember that bit

So funny & so true. Really made me smile. Thanks.

[riderinthestorm]

11. So sad and SO hard!

I helped mive my grandmother out of her home that she'd been in for 45 years! Wrenching!

But she always felt "lighter" in her possessions and her life when she downsized.

Good luck to you!! (((( hugs))))

[lillypaddle]

26. Thanks! nt

[rug]

12. If you're impatient, skip to 2:50.

Then hug your granddaughter.

[enough]

18. Thanks, rug. (nt)

[lillypaddle]

27. Wow

Now THAT tells a story. Amazing, thanks.

[NV Whino]

13. Save a few items for your granddaughter

She will treasure them when she is old enough.

[Lex]

15. Watch the 2009 movie "Up" and

you'll have a good feeling about what you're doing.

[RebelOne]

16. I am sort of in the same boat as you.

In January I will be moving in with my son and his wife. But they have had some hard times recently and my Social Security is no longer covering my expenses. I own and live in a mobile home, but I have accumulated a lot as I have been here since 1997. I have an attached enclosed garage with a lot of stuff that I have stored. I also have two bedrooms, a living room and a dining room all full of furniture. And also, a refrigerator, a stove and two room A/C units. I know that I will not get much on all that stuff if I have a yard sale. Also, I have three closets chock-full of clothing and there will be only one closet available when I move in with them.

Plus, I have a lot of oil paintings on the walls and I love every one of them. And many, many knickknacks. It will be hard to part with them. I think I am going to have to rent a storage area. Luckily, my son has a booth at a flea market, and I hoping to sell some things there.

[lillypaddle]

28. Yes, it is tough & overwhelming

Good luck to you, Rebel.

[roguevalley]

19. i feel your pain, lilly. I wonder who will love my teddy bear someday

Start a journal. write your life and everything you can remember. put down all your opinions and beliefs and all of it. Put in pictures to show who you're talking about. All of it. They will go over burning coals to have that some day. Trust me.

[polly7]

21. That's a great idea! Having photos and memories of everything will be so special. nt.

[polly7]

20. I'm sorry lillypaddle.

It's so hard to give up things you've loved for years ..... and yes, they're things, but they've brought you joy. Hopefully you can sell or gift them to someone who will love them as you have. And that beautiful GRANDBABY will have you feeling better about it all in no time! Congratulations to you!

[panader0]

22. The really important stuff to me are photos, paintings, kid things.

I'l buy the 1915 dining room set for more than a quarter.

[grasswire]

23. yeah, we do have a marketplace feature here on DU...

...where members can sell things.

[GeorgeGist]

29. Sounds like a good trade to me ...

Precious stuff for a granddaughter.

[lillypaddle]

30. That is the truth! nt