How To Put Your Entire Life in Two Suitcases

Re-published from my old travel blog when I was studying abroad in Europe

January 31, 2015

Currently two days away from departure to Spain and I’m quickly realizing that my everyday existence requires far too much stuff. It never really occurs to you how many things you touch and use everyday until you have to somehow gather it all up and pack it into a bag, jump on it a few times to make sure it zips, and pray to God that it doesn’t weigh over 50 pounds (which it always does).

If men had to guess how many bottles of shampoo, conditioner, lotions, face washes, body washes, foundations, bronzers, mascara, shaving creams etc.. a woman uses on a daily basis to achieve even her most average of looks they would finally realize why “packing light” isn’t a real thing.

I spent the past few hours circling my bedroom and bathroom trying to distinguish my belongings that fall into the ‘essentials’ category. What I came up with was, well a lot of shit to be honest. Isn’t all of it essential? Cue the voice inside my head, “not unless you want to pay a steep $150 fee for every overweight suitcase you shamefully roll up to baggage claim.”

SO HOW DOES ONE DETERMINE WHAT TO BRING AND WHAT TO LEAVE BEHIND? 

I decided that packing is probably like most things in life, where “you don’t know what you’ve got until it’s gone.” So I started weeding through my massive piles one item at a time trying to keep only the things I’d be disappointed to have to live without. I imagined not having each item and if it didn’t make me sad, I felt confident putting it back. I was left with a lot less stuff and a feeling of accomplishment. Granted, my definition of ‘a lot less’ is most likely my father’s definition of “you’re trying to bring ALL of that?!”

I feel like I’m making progress and for the first time I’ve convinced myself that putting my entire life in two suitcases might actually be possible.  That being said, physically attempting to put any of it inside the suitcases has yet to happen…so we’ll see.