12 The Senior Reporter | January Regional Senior Housing Directory 2018
After more than 50 years of
marriage, I had a stock answer
whenever my wife, Bonnie,
suggested we consider moving:
“That’s between you and your next
husband.” In other words, I had
no intention of budging from our
home … I was dug in. My very
patient bride usually smiled at my
light-hearted comment, for we both
knew there would be myriad things
involved in a move and neither
of us, especially at our age, was
enthused about starting down that
road.
But time catches up with people
and houses alike. For example, our
home had two levels, and we noticed
that we weren’t visiting the upstairs
rooms as often as we used to …
the stairs had become increasingly
difficult. And while our house was
in excellent condition, there was
always some sort of maintenance
or housekeeping issue to tend to. I
had always taken pride in handling
most repairs and renovations that
came my way but, with age, I
no longer relished climbing an
extension ladder to clean the gutters
or repair a piece of loose trim.
Perhaps Bonnie was right …
maybe it was time to think about a
new living arrangement.
Once we reached that conclusion,
we took the time to seriously
consider who we are, what we want
in life, and what we wanted our
new lifestyle to look like. We then
stayed focused on that goal as we
sold our home, moved to an “Over-
55” apartment community, and rid
ourselves of a lot of accumulated
stuff. We were fortunate that
the sale of our house was quick
and easy, the move itself was
flawless, and our new neighbors
have proven to be exceedingly
warm and welcoming. It is not an
overstatement to describe our new
lifestyle as one of reduced stress and
increased personal commitment.
For those considering a similar
journey, a bit of advice: It is
important to carve out time for rest
and relaxation along the way. At
the start of an adventure like this,
the mountain of tasks can seem
overwhelming, and one can be
left to wonder where to start. And
while it may seem counterintuitive
to formally plan for a nap or other
sorts of diversions in the midst
of all that needs to be done, the
value of setting aside time for rest
cannot be overstated. For us, it was
essential that we take on this project
in small bites and, as we did so, to
stay focused on the goal we had set
for ourselves … a rightsized life.
Dan Carlson’s book Home Sweet
Apartment: Getting Rightsized in
Our Seventies discusses steps for
comfortably relocating, strategies
for letting go of stuff, managing
the stress of a major lifestyle
change, and making smart choices
about what is important in life.
It also provides a “Right-sizing
Checklist” designed to assist with
the process. This book is available
on Amazon in both paperback and
digital formats.
Getting Rightsized
in Our Seventies
by Daniel Carlson