Change your view. Change your point of view.
Sometimes moving is good for the soul. We are of an age when moving is a huge chore. We have not done the downsizing that anyone our age should have done by now. But we (I, at least) have committed to doing it now. And it actually feels OK. Sorry, mom, but I am parting with some of your things, finally. I wish your grandkids wanted some of these treasures. They don’t, but I’m keeping your favorite knife, and yes, it’s a good one.
Our past addresses include: Seattle: 723 Federal, 742 10th; the pool in Houston, Robinhood in Houston; somewhere in Bellevue; in Seattle: 13th Ave, a different address on Federal Ave, our first house, the duplex, the boat, 59th St apt, 59th St condo; then the Skagit house; back in Seattle: 6501 condo, 1120 Spring, 900 University; briefly Enumclaw; and now Olympia. Eighteen addresses in 58 years. That’s a lot of moving. Our first three apartments were furnished, so we just moved clothes and dishes. That doesn’t seem to be a thing today – furnished apartments, but it was good when we started out.
Most of our moves had perceptible ambiguities from the outset. They would do for the moment, but there was no sense that they were final. Then we moved to a retirement community that we assumed would be our last and final address. But no. Seven years in, we both felt the need to leave. Part was the neighborhood that had changed so much during our time there. Part was just the realization that I was constrained in uncomfortable ways, part was the fact that it no longer worked for us when my husband gave up his driver’s license. We moved closer to recreation areas that we liked, but we knew it couldn’t be our last address.
It took less time than we expected for us to crave a walkable neighborhood. We had always opted to live in walkable neighborhoods, then we didn’t, and we soon realized that we’d made a mistake. So now, Olympia. And a very walkable neighborhood in Olympia. Across the street from the West Bay of Budd Inlet. Turn left to get to cafes, stores, a bakery, and a grocery store; turn right to get to free concerts and the farmers’ market. Look south to the state Capitol, north to the Olympic mountains. Can’t drive? Buses are free and easy to access; Uber and Lyft are nearby; there are small stores, big stores, open space and forests and streams nearby. Could this be our last address? Yes, could be, but we’ve learned that we don’t really know for sure.
So, we have changed our view. What about changing our point of view. Well, as in most places, the chatter I hear here is decidedly one-sided. Granted, I have only met a fraction of the residents here, and I gradually want to engage more of them in conversation. But Olympia, as a community, is perhaps bluer than even Seattle. (Is that possible?) So I might have trouble finding people who inhabit the “radical center,” which is where I position myself. Still, I practice “I Statements” in discussions to avoid making people who want to disagree feel uncomfortable. I suspect there are other centrists who are just too bashful to engage.
What I always hope to find is someone who is well informed on an issue I know little about (or even on one I know more about) who can talk me out of my leanings, whether left or right, without being obnoxious! “I never thought of it that way,” is something I enjoy saying. Does that seem strange?
So much about the setting we’re living in now is calming, restorative, just all around pleasant. Will the people be engaging and uplifting? I think so, but I value my online connections in case they’re not.
Sauk City Blog 