Let’s face it, moving takes a great deal of work, time and effort. Moving is tough stuff. Since last July, I have been working on remodeling my home and preparing to move. It has been a slow process, but we closed on the property sale last week. So, we are done. It is a great feeling in so many ways.
Even so, I can not help but to be just a bit emotional over it all. I had owned that particular property for over 33 years. It held lots of great memories for me from years past. However, it is time to start a new chapter. I know that so many of you have been through this process many times. So, take a few minutes to remember the past places where you have lived. Think about the pleasant memories and what it felt like when you moved away.
Over the span of my life, I have been very fortunate in that I have only had to move four times. i
We moved from Minden to Shreveport when I was three. Of course, I don’t remember much about that. We moved from North Shreveport to South Shreveport (just outside of the city limits) when I was nine. And, we moved back into the Shreveport city limits when I was 21. Finally, I moved away from home and bought my own home (which is the home I just sold) when I was 27. Considering my age, that is an average of moving about every 15 years, if my math is correct.
Though moving is tough, it can also be fun. I had a great time remodeling my home. It was fun and moving was in fact fun. And, in moving, I found so many interesting things. Things from the my past all the way back to kindergarten. And, things that I didn’t even remember having and things that I didn’t even know that I had or had totally forgotten about. I found some real treasures. Not long after the moving process began, I came to realize that possessions that sometimes hold little or no value to others can be priceless to us.
As such, I found so many treasured family photos, etc. that hold such great memories and meaning for me. Admittedly, I am a “pack rat.” I save almost everything. However, during my my recent move, my “pack rat” tendencies really surfaced when it came time to clean out my attic. Being a “pack rat” can be a pain in so many ways, but I found so many valuable and priceless treasures. I found several school yearbooks ranging from fifth grade through my college years. I found my paper mache “Snoopy” from my 7th grade art class. And, I also found my CO2 wooden car from Industrial Arts class in the 7th grade. Since it was 1976, the wooden car had a patriotic red, white and blue American flag type of paint job which took me forever to finish. Surprisingly, the paint job on the wooden car still looks good and the CO2 cartridge is still in the back.
Additionally, I found a classic Underwood typewriter from when my parents first went into business in the 1960’s (the typewriter is actually much older than that). And, I still have the 1956 classic coke machine from my parents first went into business. And, it still works. I also discovered an Atari video game console from the 1970’s (it had never been out of the box). My Dad was a wholesale distributor for such items back in the 1970’s and 1980’s. And, that particular discovery led to a nice and very profitable sale of the video game console on e-Bay. For sure, we never know what valuable (and sometimes even profitable) treasures will be hiding in the most unexpected places.
I can not hide the fact that I am a horrible mover. I am slow at getting it done. And, I take a ton of time going through everything. And, if newspapers were used for packing, watch out because absolutely I can not resist sitting down somewhere to look through the pages.
For example, my recent attic cleaning expedition led me to discovering a Shreveport Times from 1972 where an ad listed a brand new Lincoln Mark II for just $4,995. Really? That seems totally unimaginable these days, huh?
Do I plan to move again any time soon? Hopefully not. Maybe never again. It is soon going to be time to begin the process of clearing out and selling my parents’ home. That is going to be tough for all of the reasons mentioned above. And, it will also very sad for me. Again, I know that so many of you have been through this same process. However, I can not help but wonder about the hidden treasures and memories that are waiting there? I can hardly wait to find out.
Randy Brown is Vice President of Specht Newspapers, Inc., and publisher of the Minden Press-Herald.