we sold our Honda Odyssey.
we have had conversations lately about downsizing our life. getting rid of the necessaries. cutting stuff out of our budget. spending more time making an impact and spending less money on ourselves.
it just didn't feel right to be spending so much each month on transportation. i have enjoyed it, don't get me wrong - it has been luxurious! but certainly not necessary. hubby's sister was selling their van at about the time we were talking about getting rid of ours - perfect. so we bought it and put our Odyssey on Craigslist and within a week someone snatched it up!
it feels really good to get that off our back - and will feel even better next month without that hefty car payment!
i feel like we are beginning a journey. i am not sure where it will lead, but i like the direction.
we live in a "rough" neighborhood - at least that is what people tell me. we choose this house because it needed work (and hubby does magic on a house needing a major face lift) and we could afford to buy a triplex knowing that others would be helping with our mortgage. we initially thought we would stay here a year or two (would we really want to raise our child in this neighborhood??!!) and then move to a single-family home where we could raise the family, a huge garden and live off the land.
recently we have been talking about what it might look like to stay here longer.
financially it is a good place for us.
spiritually it is stretching for me. in a good way. i continue to learn what it really means to be a neighbor. to love my neighbor. honestly, i don't even know many of my neighbors. i had an "excuse" for a while - my baby, and being hit with some depression. but is that even a valid excuse? everyone is busy, everyone has highs and lows, i think i use that as an cop out. i like people. i am an extrovert. being at home all day with zoom starts to sap the energy from me, and i need to be revived by some social interaction. but i don't know why i don't get out more and meet people right in my hood. i want to be a friend to the single mom who lives across the street from us, but i think i am intimidated by how vastly different our lives are instead of seeing ways we might be able to learn from each other. i'd like to be more excited about being her friend, helping her in the (i cannot imagine how difficult it would to raise a child by myself) journey of parenting.
i feel selfish. then when i don't do anything about it i feel complacent.
i think this is related to selling the van. getting out of what is comfortable and allowing myself to be stretched (not that the toyota sienna is rough to ride) in new ways.
maybe this is the week i will meet a new neighbor.
i am really thankful that my hubby has led this discussion and has the drive to do something about it. i love that refining part of marriage.
2 comments:
You sold your van! Wow. That was a big move; and it sounds like it was quite a liberating move as well. Interesting.
I know what you mean about getting to know your neighbors: it actually takes a lot of work. It isn't like when I (we) was young and unencumbered by life's responsibilities. Now people have jobs and have to make their own food and keep their houses clean and blahblahblah. Life is a lot of work! It was a lot easier living at home, when parents took care of all the sordid details. Also, living in an area with more transient residents (apartments with renters) makes things more difficult: people are continuously moving on. Then, of course, there is the radical differences in cultural and sub-cultural backgrounds. That can be extremely intimidating. And finally - at least in my situation - there is the Husband Factor: partnered to an introvert who wants to remain anonymous. Then what...?
Very interesting ponderings. It's nice to give the old girl (my brain) a work-out now and then.
Thinking about it more, winter (in MN) is a more difficult time to meet up with neighbors. I've found that the spring/summer/fall are much easier seasons to mix, because people are actually outside.
Post a Comment