Leave nothing behind, take only memories.

Preparing for the big move we've come to realise that we're not what some might call materialistic. Most of our stuff gets left behind with friends, family, friends of friends or disappears into the mystifying void that is Marktplaats.
The sum of our worldly possessions will fit in less than 30 move boxes (we're selling the car and not taking the furniture)

Right now it feels like we're erasing our life bit by bit, until we're left with nothing but two cats, some cash, 4 suit cases of clothing and a paper slip that says that in 6-10 weeks, 15,000 kilometers away, there might be 30 boxes of stuff waiting for us (or not ) to build a new life on.

We've started to cancel most of the things that connect us to Holland like health care, insurance, media, subscriptions, charities, parking, utilities, taxes and so forth. The required phone conversations show an eerily similar pattern, which makes us think that there is just 1 company in Holland that trained large organisations in dealing with departing members/customers. They are always sad to see us (our money) go, although we did not particularly feel the love from most of them when we were customers (with exception for Proteq Animal Insurance and our veterinarian of whom we are sure that if there is a heaven, they've got reserved parking and free membership waiting for them). However, if we decide to realize our mistake and become customer agains, we're welcome back any time. "Thanks, but are you sure you want to provide cable/internet/insurance in Australia?" Confused silence (that was not in the script!) "Ehm, no, that won't work, but good luck anyway!" The best one so far was DELA, where the lady on the other side (trainee of the month, no doubt) was trying to assure me that they could send an 'acceptgiro' every quarter so I could mail it back and keep paying the fee until my 65th birthday. Stunned silence on my side (Booyah!). Note to family: if we get eaten by sharks, crocs, dingos or oversized hamsters, there's a 1,000 bucks for drinks in it for you, courtesy of DELA, they'll send you a check. If we live to see 65 before that fatal hamster encounter, there's 1,250 bucks (added interest, so you can order snacks as well. Really, treat yourselves, go all out!).

The rather unexpected and seriously unpleasant part is having to explain over and over that the stuff that really matters can only be carried in memories and is not in things. For example how Rotterdam smells, looks and feels at 5 in the morning when most people still sleep, but the summer sun is already up and the city belongs to the birds and weirdos. The comfortable silence of the Helmond house, the Rotterdam harbour where Gil used to work with his dad, Oostvoorne, the Zuidpleinflat, seeing our friends become parents, feeling surrounded by people who care for us, schools and universities, the walks around Poortugaal, the bond forged with the kung fu brothers and sisters, the house in Neuilly, driving to and from Paris...

The list is nearly endless and still all items on it have 1 thing in common; as soon as we leave, they are out of reach but only a thought away. We'll go by the divers creed: leave nothing behind, take only memories.