Traveling Light

One of the first things I realized when I decided to go away to college was that for the next four years of my life, I would have two quite tangible homes. True, one was (and is) in a dorm with several hundred other people, and I would have to wear shoes into the shower, and the quality of the food would be debatable at best, but it's a kind of home all the same. And the concept of having multiple homes remains quite bizarre in a way, even two and a half years into this whole college experiment. I'm used to going back and forth now, used to almost never having all of my belongings in one place, used to spending lots of time in airports and train stations as I attempt to get from one place to another.

Packing up tonight to go back to DC, I am surprised (and a bit ashamed of myself) for all the *stuff* I have accumulated over the last month of break. I realize that most of it is somewhat necessary-- I had to go shopping to build up a wardrobe appropriate for my internship, attire that unfortunately needs to go beyond my usual preference for jeans and a t-shirt-- but the fact that packing it is amounting to a cardboard box (which I am shipping), a suitcase, and a backpack still seems a bit much to me. Since I have only carried a backpack and duffel bag on my last couple of trips home, I have learned the immense value of traveling light. I really like carrying as little as possible; admittedly, it's having my belongings divided between two places that currently allows me to do that. But I appreciate more and more that owning less-- and carrying less-- makes life less stressful. As Leo wrote over at mnmlist, there is a "true cost of stuff" beyond what you pay when you purchase it.

Since I am in the process of downsizing-- which in some ways requires as much mental effort as physical-- it's helpful to me to envision a life where I can truly say I place a higher value on experiences and people than on things, and to picture myself traveling light, no matter whether I am going on a walk around the block or a trip around the world. Traveling light means not having to stress out because you place a low enough value on your stuff that it's not worth worrying. It's a mental benefit of a physical act, and I think it would be well worth it to reach that point.