One of the biggest decisions we have to make before we depart for the open sea is whether to sell or to rent our home. We have talked into the wee hours of the night about the pros and cons, about what this house means to us, about how the finances will be different if we rent versus sell.
Until now, I have been holding on to the idea of coming back to our home. There is a peaceful energy here, a sense that it was built with love. We are only the second owners, and the first were homesteaders who built the house themselves in the 1950's (this makes it a VERY old house in Anchorage, Alaska). 3001 Brookside Drive is the place where we raised our babies, where they first nursed, crawled, laughed and slept. It is our first home.
There is a cliche that keeps popping into my head as I ruminate about this - "Home is where the heart is." More and more, I think I believe it. When I go deeper (as my yoga instructor would say), I realize that my attachment to this place is more connected to the environment, to the view, the energy, the natural setting, to the memories that are connected to the physical house, not really the house itself.
I woke up one day last week feeling somehow released of the sadness connected to leaving this house forever. Feeling lighter and happy about selling the house and being more totally free while living a life of salt air and adventure.
So watch out, Anchorage friends. If/when we return from our travels, we will most likely be penniless AND homeless and looking for couches on which to crash.
One big decision made. Hundreds more to go. Now time to PURGE, pack, clean, paint, and do all that is necessary to extract 10 years' worth of living from a home.
