This past week I’ve been moving. This will be my 3rd move since getting to Columbus for my graduate program. It’s come with logistical stresses, sweat, sunburns, and many bruises and scrapes from handling furniture and belongings. However, my time at the Siemer Institute has taught me that it also comes with and stems from privilege. I have voluntarily moved. I was never forced out due to high rent, inhabitable conditions, or an income loss that left me reeling. I’m moving because I wanted a different space, a better neighborhood, and to live under the same roof as my partner.

But the families Siemer funds don’t have this luxury. They have children to worry about displacing, they are moving because they have to, and rarely is to a better and more stable situation. All of the little complaints about drafty windows, lack of a/c, noisy neighbors, and inattentive landlords are inconsequential, compared to the struggle of making ends meet. Moving by choice is a privilege.

When thinking about the stories of housing crises I’ve heard over the last 2 months, I even feel guilty for being stressed at all during this move. If something went wrong, I have family to support me. My roommates and I are reviewing oodles of furniture and housewares to nest our new home. In contrast, some Siemer funded families move into a different home and apartment despite having no furniture and no solid back-up plans.

So, when searching the web for funny moving puns I became genuinely upset to learn that there is an entire market out their for greeting cards, silly moving box stickers, and house-warming gifts. They all make it seem so casual and natural. You can mention moving in small talk and nearly anyone will comment with a commiserative anecdote about their own moving woes.

However, instead of insinuating that people that move voluntarily should feel guilt, I suggest that they should instead feel grateful – feel humbled. And maybe, for at least a moment, think about what it means to move. Think not only about the stress and the bruises, but also what it might mean for those less fortunate.