Before I do anything else today . . .

Before I do anything else today I would like to reflect on the moving situation. One thing that people don't take into consideration is the emotional impact that downsizing has. We are collectors; we spend a lifetime collecting things and memories. While I have moved more times than I care to remember and my transatlantic move forced me to leave behind lots of "things", I am once again facing that process of going through each and every item I own (paper/document/book/picture) and making a decision - pitch or keep, trash or treasure????? Although I've done this before, it's not any easier.

I've come across forgotten trinkets, revived silver earrings and bracelets, and looked at photos that have taken me back to parties and events long past. School books and papers that I wrote at Miami were revisited. And I began to feel a sense of loss. I was a non-traditional student who LOVED my undergraduate experience. Miami University was a world in which I flourished. My semesters included drama classes, horseback riding, buddhism, along with a semester abroad.

As third year students, a friend and I decided that we needed to also include a minor and we scrambled to find one that would compliment our majors. I finally graduated with a BA in History and a minor in Medieval Studies. In addition to studying the 12th Century and women in the middle ages, I took classes in medieval art and Chaucer. There was a time that I would discuss the iconography of tympanums, eat lunch in the remains of a Roman amphitheater, and go out of my way to travel to Autun (a remote town in France) to marvel at the sculptures of Gislebertus.

And as I write this I wonder what has happened to that woman. That woman who was filled with optimism and positive energy. That woman who was ready to tackle the world. That woman who had a sense of adventure and trusted her own competence. At the moment we are miles apart. I hope I rediscover her among the many boxes left to go through . . .