Moving out.

As a TCK, you move many times; however, this year I have only really come to realize how hard it is. Past moves I was in the background. I would help pack my room a bit and help my mom sort out our things, but moving companies did the real work. Moreover, I never really understood what was so stressful about it. My parents were always stressed at moving time, when my brother and I would lounge around and really not see the big deal. This year though, I have had to move out all by myself. Yes, it is only moving out of my student room, but still, I managed to cram a lot of stuff in there. With me travelling around this summer, I had to find somewhere to leave my things for the 3 months of summer break.

A definite upside to being a TCK is that you learn to dispose of clutter. With every move, you have to go through all your things and dispose of anything that you don't think you will need. Like this year, I donated numerous clothing items, got rid of old notebooks and magazines, and just generally de-cluttered my life. As a TCK, you do this every few years, with each move. You learn to keep only the necessary things and the things that mean a lot to you. It is definitely a good lesson to learn when you are young, and a trait that I have seen with many fellow TCK's.

The stress comes mainly, I think, from not knowing exactly where you stuff will be, and if it will return in the same condition. You leave your things somewhere or with someone for a few months, and when you come back, you hope that everything is all right. For my fellow first years, the moving out process was fairly easy. Parents would come up for the day with their car, put the back seats down, and pile everything into the car. It would then be driven home and be driven back in September. For me, there was a little bit more planning. I am leaving my things with several friends, each coming to pick up things on different days. Don't get me wrong; I am so grateful for these friends and the fact that they are willing to take my things. It just made me realize the extra stress that being a TCK comes with. Let's just say, I will be happy to see all my things again after 3 months of living out of one suitcase!

As I am growing up, I see certain aspects of my childhood differently. Moving is one of those. As I said, I have come to realise how stressful it is, and how much work my parents put in to every move. I definitely did observe a lot when I was younger though, and I found that I was rather effective at moving out. I guess that is a skill a TCK can put on their CV; good at moving!