dual personalities

After 20+ years in a second floor office, I am moving down to the first floor. I’ll spare you the details about why I’m doing this; suffice it to say that I volunteered because no one else would. I went to work yesterday to prepare for the move only to discover that I — old lady that I am — have to move everything except the furniture by myself. Reader, that includes a career’s accumulated books! I don’t have any current photos of my office, but let’s look at this one from 2013. Notice the large bookcase to the right of the desk

A couple of years later, I added a matching one to the left of the desk to replace to the little one. Those two bookcases are in addition to the five, similarly sized sections of floor to ceiling shelves built in to the wall opposite the desk.

In total I’m moving the contents of seven, floor-to-ceiling bookcases plus sundry belongings. Lest you think I’m a hoarder, know that I am discarding as many books as possible along the way. I am well aware that one day, like my DP, I will retire, and when I do, I will have to find room somewhere at home for all the stuff in my office.

On the whole, I’m facing the task cheerfully and with determination. Yesterday, armed with a small video cart, I schlepped all the books from the built-in shelves and loaded them onto the shelves in the new office. Admittedly, by the end of the day I could barely move, and I feel stiff this morning, but today, I will tackle the two free-standing cases and the contents of the filing cabinets. (The maintenance people claim they can only move empty filing cabinets, which is hogwash but what can a girl do?)

Anyway, here are a couple of lessons to learn from my experience: (1) do not volunteer to do something unless you know in advance how it will be carried out; (2) it may feel as if good deeds get punished, but we don’t do them for reward, so don’t complain; (3) undertake every task cheerfully and remember that “in hard work there is always something gained” (Proverbs 14:23).