Once again, I find myself helping someone prepare to move.
Stress
We all experience stress. It can come from any corner of your life: family, work, money, even sports. But as my friend likes to say, the three biggest stressors are death, divorce, and moving. Some research shows moving is the most stressful. I don’t know if I’d rank it as number one, but there’s no question it’s near the top.
To mitigate some of the stress, plan your move carefully, allowing plenty of time to pack. (Believe me, it takes a lot longer than you’d imagine to sort through and pack an apartment or house. I’ve done both.) If you have family and friends nearby, don’t be afraid to do what my friend did and ask for help. (I couldn’t have gotten out of my Tennessee home on the agreed-upon date if not for friends and family. And I’d been preparing and packing for over a year!)
Did You Know…
- Moving can be even more stressful if it is unexpected, especially if it is due to a traumatic event like a fire or a death.
- In one survey, 35% of those responding confessed that during a move they’d secretly lost or broken an item belonging to their spouse or significant other because they didn’t like it.
Early Moves
In 2020, North American Van Lines asked OnePoll to conduct a moving survey. 64% of the respondents claimed their recent move ranked as one of the most stressful things they’d ever done. Almost 50% of them claimed the most stressful parts of the whole process were packing (48%) and deciding what to keep or get rid of (47%).
But think about the early colonists and/or settlers. Back then, moving must have been extremely stressful, much more so than today, because even if you prepared for it properly, the move could kill you. They had to pack things that would help them survive, since there wasn’t a store on every corner. And, no matter how they traveled—by foot, horse, wagon, or boat—there would have been only a limited amount of room—if any—for anything other than those survival supplies.
Packing isn’t the only stressor linked to moving. Before my move to Tennessee, I thought about how I was leaving behind family and friends. Thanks to today’s modern technology, though, it was easy to stay in touch. A couple of hundred years ago, it was a different story. There was no guarantee you’d ever see your friends or loved ones again. Even communicating through letters could be dicey. But that didn’t stop people from moving.
Never Too Old
In 1807, when my paternal great-great-great-grandfather, Edward, was thirty years old, he moved from Virginia to Tennessee. He built his life and raised his family there. His father and his oldest brother, John, remained in Virginia, though many of Edward’s siblings also moved to Tennessee.
When John died in 1836, Edward’s younger brother, Thomas, wanted their father to come to Tennessee. He wrote to John’s son in Virginia on May 20, 1837.
“Dear Nephew, I have received your favor some days since, have not answered it till now. I have been trying to get some person that I could depend on to go in after Father as it is out of my power to come myself with any degree of convenience. I have just got back from New Orleans & have a great deal business to attend to. If you will take the trouble to get some safe hand to come out with him I will pay the expense of the trip together with the expense you may be at in fixing him up. I think they had better have a carriole & a good gentle horse. Bring nothing but the wearing clothes & bedding…”
In March of 1838, the nephew wrote with news that the trip had been successful.
“…[They] tell me Grandfather and his wife were well and well pleased and the connections generally in Tensee were also well…”
What’s amazing is that my fourth great-grandfather, Joseph—who lived to see 100—was around 95 at the time of this move.
Did You Know…
- A carriole was a type of carriage used in the 18th and 19th centuries. It was a small, lightweight vehicle, either two- or four-wheeled, open or covered, and drawn by a single horse.
- Cariole is French and is derived from carrus, the Latin word for vehicle.
Twentieth Century
Jumping forward about seventy-five years, you’d think moving would have been easier. After all, there were trains, cars, and trucks. But the U.S. is a large country, and these convenient modes of transportation weren’t found everywhere. Even if they were, not everyone could afford them.
In the spring of 1913, when my maternal grandmother was twelve years old, her family moved west from North Texas to just across the border in Eastern New Mexico. This roughly one-hundred-mile trip took over a week. The pace was slow because they traveled in two covered wagons. Most of the time, they rode because they were barefoot, and the sand was HOT! One evening, as they camped on the side of the road, a car drove by. Not sure how far into the trip they were, but that was the only car she mentioned seeing.
Final Thoughts
I guess it’s the writer in me, but I can’t help but think about the difficulties people in the past faced when they moved. For me, leaving behind family and friends would have been the worst.
Moving today isn’t fun. It’s hard work. But put it into perspective. Compared to what people experienced in the past, it’s a breeze.