The Big Move

by Steve Lazarowitz

I'm thinking about moving.

That is, I'm sitting in my computer chair, looking thirstily toward the kitchen. I'm dehydrated, tired and my muscles don't want to respond. Ten feet away is an ice cold Canfield's Diet Chocolate Fudge Soda. I'm sitting here typing. I consider this your fault.

Yes you, my reading public. For I am such a conscientious writer, I will sit here for hours, even days, staring at a blank screen until I get an idea for a column. Which is what I had been doing until about two minutes ago. Refreshment is waiting ten feet away, but I canŐt indulge until my work is done. You should be ashamed of yourself!

In fact, forget you all. I'll be right back.

bare feet padding on linoleum.....sound of a refrigerator door opening....sound of an individual can being pulled from a six pack....bare feet again....sound of a can being opened...

Better! Now to business -- back to moving.

We move every day. I move to scratch my head, to prevent my foot from falling asleep, to stretch my aching muscles. Those are small moves.

We also move from one geographical location to the other. For short distances, we walk. Longer, we take a drive (or ride a camel, if you live in the Sahara). For really long distances, we board a plane.

Now if you own a house and sell it and buy another, it's almost a misnomer to say you've moved. You're moving all the time. What you've moved are your physical possessions. THEY have moved.

I'm thinking about relocating, myself. That is to say, moving my physical possessions.

I need to find a place that is warm. I can't stand the cold weather anymore. I'm not thrilled with blazing heat either, but if I had to choose, it would be heat over cold.

I'm looking at Venus. Nice and warm and, as an added bonus, you get 243 days to one Earth day. I'm always complaining about not having enough hours in a day! Do you know how much I can accomplish in that time?

Of course, the Venusian year is only 224.7 Earth days. That's an interesting arrangement. Could you imagine living on a planet where each day is longer than a year? Eleven years is about ten days. I could just see going to the boss and trying to get a day off!

Okay, so maybe Venus isn't the right place for me. But I'd sure like to find SOMEWHERE with longer days!

Of course there's another type of move that we don't talk about as much, at least not in this context. It's when we leave behind our bodies and make our way toward whatever comes next. Yes, I'm invoking the big "D" here. That's what I call a MOVE!

As a move, it does have advantages. You don't have to pack. That's a good thing. And you don't have to decide where you're going. That's already decided. At least, according to western religion it is.

Come to think of it, maybe I shouldn't be looking to move someplace warm!

I'd sort of like to think we have some control after we die. I don't know that we do, but I think it would be cool. In fact, what if dying was like being born?

In a way, it might be. Starting out fresh in a new location with no possessions. Not really knowing the rules of that other place. Hopefully, I won't find the answers to THAT mystery for a long time. Anyway, I kinda need to wrap this up.

I have got a busy day planned and I've got to get moving.

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