LEARNING TO PART WITH THINGS YOU LOVE

We sacrificed square footage for location when we moved to our current apartment. Spending more time walking through a charming neighborhood and visiting local shops and parks by foot was more important to us than having extra floor space. But when you downsize your home, you also have to downsize your furniture. Though I love scouting for deals and restyling rooms, there are some pieces that have begun to mean something. Getting rid of those is tricky for the heart.

When Henry was first born, I spent half of those first days and sleepless nights sitting with him in our cushiony glider. It was second hand and certainly not a beauty, so initially I'd eyed my impulse purchase with regret. But its comfort and sweetness of the memories it had absorbed during the first months of Henry's life endeared it to me. So it was a sad afternoon when I realized it wouldn't fit in the new nursery.

We found the glider a good home, and brought in a small, wooden rocking chair from my parents attic - the same chair they used to rock me and my sisters to sleep. The new-to-us chair has charm, fits perfectly in the little window nook, and over the past six months has begun to seat it's own set of happy memories.

Living minimally is sometimes hard. It's easy to part with things broken beyond repair or never used, but learning to part with some of the things you love is difficult. Even so, learning to give up those things that stand in the way of new experiences and memories is always going to be worth more.