The Joy of Downsizing

Written by: 4th Corner Commons Member, Susan Gee Rumsey

In May 2020, my husband and I left the San Francisco Bay Area in California and moved to Bellingham WA, accompanied by a 50-foot moving van filled with things collected over three lifetimes: his, mine, and my late mother the hoarder.

Having successfully transitioned to my dream house in the most beautiful place I had ever lived, I made an honest effort to rid myself of the too-much stuff I'd brought up here. I was interrupted by basement-flooding atmospheric rivers, beset with sorting fatigue, distracted by the demands of daily living, and, post-pandemic, mostly interested in establishing a social life in our new land where we knew no one, neither friends nor relatives.

Then, in 2022 and again in 2024, my husband had mild strokes that left him with memory issues and me with foreboding for our future in our new home. Living on a quarter acre with plenty of foliage, but no neighbors to speak of, and needing to drive everywhere was not ideal for two people already in their seventies and just getting older. I quickly came to the realization that we simply would not be able to live here forever.

What to do? Buying a different house in a different location seemed pointless, even if it were available at a price we could afford. Condos and apartments would bring us closer to other people, but felt insecure by contrast with living in a home we owned outright. And we are by no means ready for an assisted living situation designed to serve the age 50+ set or any of its followup stages of nursing care, memory care, and so on downward.

So when a friend happened to mention 4th Corner Commons, a new cohousing project getting started right here in Bellingham (“City of Subdued Excitement”), it seemed my unspoken prayers had been answered with a miracle. My friend told me: "You're not buying just a place to live — you're buying a community." Frankly, before I knew anything more, I was pretty much sold. Now that I know much more about 4th Corner Commons, I am not only sold on the concept, I am committed to doing all I can to make it a reality.

And the happy side effect of having a future in the 4th Corner Commons is this: Getting rid of so much stuff used to be an obnoxious, exhausting chore that I had to force myself to tackle. Now, with the prospect of the 4th Corner Commons before me, I find it a pleasure to prepare us to move into a new dream home that will come with a community of neighbors. Even my daily shopping habits have shifted as I realize that I don’t need many things — what I need are relationships.

Downsizing becomes joyful when it opens the way to a better life.