What Relocation in your 80's Really Mean

To All Senior Citizens who are Downsizing:  Read this and you may feel Better, I hope! This is a must read to all Senior Citizens and their Families who are in the process of moving/downsizing to an active senior living community, assisted living, memory care or a nursing home facility here in the US.   

I moved from my single-home residence ( 4BR, 3B) in June 2023 to a 2-bedroom Apartment here at THD.  I was 88.5 years old then and had made a decision that living alone is no longer safe and valid option of spending the last stages of my life. I moved here to be near my 2 older children and be free of maintaining a single residence house etc, etc...... 

I was the reading the following article the other day-titled what it really meant to be relocating at 80 and it struck a cord in my Heart.  

Here's an excerpt from the article that probably most of the senior residents here at THD could identify.     

" Moving is never easy. But relocating in your 80s?  It’s not just about packing up boxes and changing your address.

It’s about leaving behind years—sometimes decades—of memories, routines, and familiar faces.

It’s about navigating big change at a time in life when even small changes can feel overwhelming.

Whether you’re moving to be closer to family, into a senior community, or simply downsizing, the emotions that come with relocating late in life are often brushed aside.

People may tell you it’s “for the best.”

They may talk about safety, convenience, and how much easier things will be.

But few talk about the quiet grief, the emotional weight, or the unexpected joy that can come with this kind of move.

This article is for you—the one packing more than boxes.

You’re carrying memories, fears, hopes, and a lifetime of experiences.

Let’s talk about the things no one tells you about relocating in your 80s.

Saying Goodbye Hurts More Than You Expect

People will tell you that moving in your 80s is just a change of scenery.

They’ll say it’s about safety.

They’ll say it’s about getting closer to family or living somewhere more manageable.

They may even call it “a fresh start.”

But what no one really says is how much it hurts to say goodbye.

It doesn’t matter if your house is too big now.

Or if the stairs have become too much.

That place was more than a building.

It was your life.

It held your laughter, your tears, and every version of yourself from the past 30 or 40 years or longer.

You knew how the floor creaked in the hallway.

You knew which window let in the best afternoon light.

You knew your neighbors, your mail carrier, your grocery store clerks.

And even if things were starting to feel harder, they were still familiar.

That familiarity gave you comfort.

When you say goodbye, you’re not just leaving a house.

You’re leaving memories behind.

You’re leaving the garden you planted yourself.

The walls where your kids’ heights were marked in pencil.

The kitchen where you danced while cooking dinner, even when no one was watching.

It’s okay to grieve that.

You’re not being overly sentimental.

You’re being human.

Because you don’t just walk away from a place like that without feeling it deep in your bones.

You may cry after the movers leave.

You may cry while folding towels in your new space, suddenly missing the old linen closet.

Let yourself feel it.

This is a goodbye that matters.

And it’s okay to mourn it like you would a dear friend.

Because for many years, that home was exactly that.

A faithful companion.

A quiet witness to your life.

And saying goodbye to it takes real courage.

When you relocate in your 80s, everyone talks about the logistics. They talk about downsizing.

About packing boxes.

About transferring your mail and updating your address with the bank.

But what no one really tells you is that the move shifts more than just where you sleep at night.

It shifts the way you see yourself.

Suddenly, you’re not the person who knows every creaky floorboard in the house.

You’re not the neighbor everyone turns to for advice on the garden.

You’re not the woman who bakes cookies for the community potluck, or the man who knows the shortcut to the post office.

You’re new again.

And that can be unsettling.

You might feel like you’ve lost more than your house.

You’ve lost your place in the world.

There’s Still Room for Joy in a New Place

It might not feel like it right away.

In fact, joy may be the last thing on your mind when you’re surrounded by cardboard boxes and unfamiliar walls.

You’re adjusting.

You’re grieving.

You’re figuring out how to live in a new space with a heart still full of memories from the old one.

Final Thoughts

Relocating in your 80s is not just about where you live.

It’s about who you are, what you carry with you, and how deeply you’ve lived.

The move may feel overwhelming.

It may bring tears, doubts, and moments of deep sadness.

But it can also bring clarity.

Peace.

Even joy.

You are not starting over—you are continuing a life that still matters.

And wherever you go, you bring the most important part of home with you: your heart".

For Details visit: 

https://wordselector.com/more-than-a-move-what-relocating-in-your-80s-really-means/

Meanwhile, here's my recent photo taken during THD Cinco De Mayo Cocktail Hour:

It is featuring my red Mexican Hat and My Personalized(with my photo) Black T-Shirt and my prospective first great grand son-the mother is in labor as of this writing date.