Valuable Lessons in Contentment from Travelling Light

At the time when I wrote this post I’d been at my parent’s house caring for my Mum and Dad. The possessions that I have with me fit into a large Decathlon rucksack. This comes highly recommended and doubles up as my day sack when I pop out to the shops. There’s also my lightweight carry on suitcase that fits under the seat of an aircraft. I haven’t flown for so long that I’m not sure if I’d be allowed to take it on a plane for free.
The two bag lifestyle that I have at the moment is positive luxury compared to my previous visit. I was planning a whistle stop tour to see my parents, just three nights. I’d brought the rucksack with a change of clothing. But then my Mum had a medical emergency and I ended up staying for three weeks. I bought some extra underwear and four more dresses from Thrift+ to tide me over. This was essential as washing facilities at my parent’s are pretty primitive and it takes an age to get anything dry.
How I Learned To Live With Less
In 1997 my ex husband and I set out to walk the Appalachian Trail from Georgia to Maine. We managed six hundred miles. Then my husband cracked his knee bone. That put paid to our little jaunt. Still our long walk was my first lesson in travelling light. What a boot camp it was.
We spent months planning what to take but still got it wrong. Four days in at Neels Gap, the first brush with civilisation, we shed a load of kit Mind you we didn’t relinquish as much as the guy whose pack looked a small freezer. Among his discards were his fluffy slippers and a pillow embroidered by his girlfriend. Gradually we shipped more back to our friend in New England until we were down to the barest essentials that met our needs for survival. Our only luxury was a book each yet we felt complete. When we returned to civilisation and got all our stuff back it was a culture shock.
Roll on to 2015 and I spent nine months living in my motorhome with my son Louis. Most of our possessions went into storage. This scenario was positively luxurious compared with trail living but I still managed without many of the things that people in conventional homes take for granted.
For example we didn’t have a proper oven but cooked with two rings, a crockpot and a halogen stove. I learnt to adapt and could even manage to rustle up a roast and cakes. We used the campsite shower and laundry and filled my water supply every day with a watering can. When I finally moved back into a house with four walls and a roof I was surprised at how much extra stuff I had.
The Knock On Effect
Now if I was living alone I would have much less stuff in my home than I had before my downsizing adventures. However I live with a bunch of people who don’t share my view. One day I’ll learn to be completely tolerant of their clutter but it’s definitely work in progress. I can only work on my own possessions and believe that much more leaves the house than comes in these days.
It’s when I go away I realise just how content I can be with packing very little in comparison. There’s no excess baggage charges for me. That carry on suitcase that I mentioned earlier has stood me in good stead when I’ve taken overseas holidays by air. I even managed to fit in ski equipment, my helmet and googles on one trip to Andalusia Okay, I was wearing all my ski gear and jumpers and came through airport security looking like the Michelin Man. But it worked!
My Packing List
I’ve been living with my parents for indefinite amounts of time this year. Sometimes I’ve spent weeks away from home. I thought that it would be handy to itemise what I typically pack that serves me in good stead for when I’m away. Obviously there are the clothes that I stand up in too.
- Four dresses
- Four pairs of leggings
- Eight changes of underwear
- One jumper (one worn on trip)
- Two pairs of yoga pants and vests worn as pyjamas
- Medication (prescribed and vitamins)
- Toothbrush and toiletries (shampoo, bar soap, deodorant, toothpaste)
- Laptop
- Phone
- Bluetooth Headphones
- Kindle
- Powerbank
- Fast Charger (that fits all electric devices above)
- Smartwatch and its charger
- Gratitude Journal and Pen
- Angel Cards
- Knock off oodie, gloves, knitted headband (winter only)
- Running kit (summer only)
- Crocs slippers
- Swimming costume
- Water bottle
- Purse
- Skipping rope and Boobuddy
- Coloured pencils, sharpener and a sharpie
- Tweezers and mirror
The above meets all my needs and ensures that I have enough clothes to get by between washes even in a dryer-less home. I borrow towels but could travel with a pack version if I needed to. If I want a book I buy one from a charity shop and return it there when I’m done with it.
I’m pretty content with what I have with me and can keep myself entertained. Thank goodness for the multi-purpose nature of modern technology! The one thing that I notice though is that with possessions down to a minimum I get a bit perturbed if something goes missing. A lost sock the other day became a major emotional drama!
Disclaimer
This post contains links to companies and organisations just because I’m happy with the products or services that they supply or I’m spreading the word about what they do. There may also be affiliate links to Amazon for books and other items that I am personally recommending. If you decide to make a purchase from them, I might get a little bit of commission at no cost to you.Edit