Too Many Boxes

I am at the age where I really appreciate a good box. You know. The strong, double corrugated kind that is sturdy. When I have a box like that, I cannot throw it away or pass it on to recycling…because it is a REALLY GOOD BOX.

Come on. Admit it. You have done it, too. Saved the box. Because it is a REALLY GOOD BOX.

I know it is an age thing. Because I never did this when I was younger. In fact, my nephew NEVER has this issue with a box. My younger brother never has this issue. You never see empty boxes straying around his house just for the sake of being a REALLY GOOD BOX. Off to the burn pile they go!

This obsession with a REALLY GOOD BOX was never so much an issue until COVID. Then everything was shipped, and you hardly went out. Then suddenly, you had too many REALLY GOOD BOXES!!

I have been trying to rack my brain on why we keep these good boxes and have such a reluctance and abhorrence to getting rid of these really good boxes as we age. I mean to be clear- these are empty boxes. I haven’t put anything in them. I am just saving them for when I do want to put something in them because, again, it is a really good box!

You know, the produce, double corrugated ones that have the built-in handles, and you could pack a set of Grandma’s China in that thing, and that box is not going to break kind of box… A REALLY GOOD BOX.

After great reflection it dawned on me that as we age, we know things are changing, and sometimes faster than we would like. A new stage is coming. A new phase. A different work pace. No work. Retirement. We need good boxes to pack up and move on to something else.

So why are so many good boxes still empty? Well that’s just it. We know we are coming to the stage when we are going to need a good box to pack up our memories, our books, our life. We overthink. We aren’t quite ready to pack it up.

Remember how in our youth we could go off on a road trip with no thought of how much money we had or if we even had a change of clothes? That’s why there are two sides to cotton underwear- so you could turn them inside out. Or so we thought. A group of ten could sleep in one motel room. With no GPS and no cell phone, you would get in the car and go. Back then we would never have saved an empty box.

As we age, we become more pragmatic- we appreciate the little things like really clean underwear, a nice hotel room with only you or you plus one, and yes, a really good box. We know we need to take our time and make good decisions. Pack up the things that are important and move on to the next big thing.

And, well, you can’t really do that with a flimsy box secured by clear tape. To pack up and move on, you have to have a REALLY GOOD BOX. Our memories are too important, and our lives too special to chance it on some flimsy cardboard. Even my cat wouldn’t chew on that stuff.

You can never have too many boxes as you age or retire. You will need them at just the right time. You will know when it is time, and boy, will you have a stash of the good ones to choose from. Or just throw them all away, recycle your underwear, and let the wind whistle in your hair. 

Only you know what you save and what you let go.