Baggage free, baby

I like to think that I’m a minimalist. I’d better be one. My husband once went on a long trip with just a bag – most of the space in the backpack was taken up by his laptop and tools.

And I’ve been through quite a lot of ‘training’ when I’ve packed a (few) bag(s) and had the conversation that seems to take place at the beginning of every trip.

“What’s all that stuff?”

“Er…luggage?”

“What do you need all that for?”

“Come on! It’s not even that much. I hardly even packed anything this time.”

The truth is, at home, I am a minimalist. I hate clutter. I get panic attacks when I see boxes or bags of things I can’t remember. Every few weeks, I have a purging routine and I sell or give away anything I haven’t touched in a while.

But as soon as it comes to travel, my personality changes and I turn into Mrs Justin Case. I tend to pack extra things because I don’t want to be caught in a situation where I regret not bringing them along. Strangely, my husband is quite the pack rat when it comes to storing things in the house.

In life though, I am not one to carry extra baggage. I hardly ever keep grudges. I am actually too forgiving and I give people second, third and fourth chances. People take advantage of that and I end up feeling like a fool.

Still, forgiveness is an important factor in getting rid of extra baggage. You don’t want to go around carrying anger, bitterness and frustration. It will weigh you down and make you age faster. But who are we kidding? It will actually kill you. Get rid of it.