Reflections on the RVing Lifestyle--Downsizing

Several of our family members have asked us what we want for Christmas.  When I consider my answer, I try to think not only of what I want, but also what I have room for.  To say the least, space is very limited in our rolling home.

As we were making our plans to live full-time in an RV, our “stuff” was not the first thing we considered.  It wasn’t the second, third, or fourth either.  When the day finally came for us to move into our new 5th wheel, we were quite surprised at what wouldn’t fit.  And this was after a considerable effort to downsize over a period of 3 years.  We had already gone down from a house to a condo to a one bedroom apartment.  Where did all this stuff come from and when do we ever use it?

Clearly, downsizing for full-time RV living was a difficult task.  We had a distinct advantage in being backpackers.  We knew we could survive on a mere 35 pounds each.  All we really needed was a shelter to keep us dry in rain, warm in cold, and safe from bugs and snakes.  We needed 2 changes of clothes, a mat to sleep on, cover to sleep under, a spoon, a cup, a bowl, a cook pot, one burner stove, a flashlight, toothbrush, a little food, pen, paper, and a book to read.  If this was all I really needed, why was I moving in three sets of bed linens, towels for all the guests we never have, china, crystal, and a fur coat?

Actually, it wasn’t that bad, but we did have to seriously think about what we needed, what we wanted, and how to dispose of the rest.  Having a 5th wheel with a rear kitchen gave us a little more storage space than some other models of RVs.  Still, it’s no house and there is precious little storage.

We did what I suspect most RVers do.  We trashed all of all that junk that had accumulated over the years that we never used.  We made about 50 trips to Goodwill with perfectly good stuff that we rarely used.  This included a whole lot of furniture.  We gave away to family members stuff that was a little more special, especially those things that had some family connection or sentimental value.  I bought Corelle dinnerware to replace the heavy and bulky stoneware, I reduced my pot and pan collection to about half, and I gave away more wine glasses than I can count.  (The rest got broken on our first travel day.)  Having offloaded about 10,000 pounds of “stuff”, we still had to rent a storage unit for those things too precious to part with.

The most difficult thing to deal with were the thousands of photographs we had between us.  Gene and I both had a lifetime of photographs; then we ended up with a lifetime of photographs from his mother when she passed away.  After an extensive search, I finally found a Walgreens that would scan the pictures for me.  Most places what you to do it yourself.  Doing 20 is fine, doing 2,000 is quite another issue.  I had to organize them how I wanted them on CDs then took them in in bundles of 75.  After all the photos were scanned and stored on CDs, I still couldn’t just throw the paper photo in the trash.  Whoever was in the picture or on the trip when the picture was made, got it.

After about 2 years on the road, we started to clean out the storage unit.  This was the stuff we really wanted to keep and so every item required much discussion and finally a heart wrenching decision.  These were not things of any great monetary value; they were family keepsakes.  Finally, at the end of last year, the storage unit was empty.  We still carry a few of those special things.  Ansley has a file drawer of important papers, my parents hung a print on their wall and are keeping a couple pieces of crystal for me, but for the most part, what we have in our 5th wheel is all that we own.

Sometimes I miss the extra space available in a home or condo, especially at this time of year when we enjoy having friends and family over to share in the blessings of the season.  Whenever that little wave of nostalgia washes over me and I give is a few minutes of serous thought, I always come away with the same conclusion--I’d rather have the freedom to roam.

It is quite liberating actually not to be encumbered with all that “stuff”.  So when someone asked me what I want for Christmas or birthday or whatever, I immediately think “consumable”.  I’ll take a bottle of wine or an Olive Garden gift card, but I don’t want anything that requires a permanent space in my home.