IF YOU LOVE YOUR HOUSE.....

....why are you selling it? That has to be THE number one, most often asked question we get in emails about our house for sale. Of course I've answered just about every other question anyone could ever think of, but still! I guess if you're thinking about buying a house in Italy you always want to know "the rest of the story"...the stuff no one tells you, the stuff that might make you reconsider. Sure, moving to any foreign country is scary and confusing, but it's also an adventure and a challenge.

So the simple answer to the question is this: we're selling our house because we didn't plan on the dollar sinking like a stone. We're selling our house because we budgeted a set amount each month for our mortgage, and that amount has now increased by nearly 40%. We're selling our house because our plan was to travel, travel, travel once we were in Italy. We though we'd be able to travel without jet lag or security checks . To travel without exorbitant transatlantic airfares and masses of tourists. To take our bottled water or contact lens solution with us. Since we've lived in Italy our travel has been very limited due to the incredible shrinking dollar, and even Art (the optimist) had to admit the things aren't likely to improve any time soon.

Had the euro cost $1.38 when we started our house hunting we would have factored that in, but at the time we were looking, the so-called experts were predicting that the euro and the dollar would eventually settle out about one to one. Oh if only we'd had a crystal ball! But wait! No, I don't think I meant that!

If we'd had a crystal ball we would have said "No, at $1.38 we just can't afford to live in Italy and travel around Europe." I guess in a way I'm GLAD we didn't know what was to come, because if we had, we probably never would have had this experience, never would have met friends who have become so dear nor had the many, many experiences we've had here.

When we made the decision to move to Italy part of our reasoning was that we didn't want to wake up one day and think "Damn, I wish we'd gone to Italy!". We wanted to enjoy Italy while we were both still young enough and healthy enough to do so. Has anyone ever laid on their deathbed and wished they'd done LESS??? I think not.

So, here we are. We curse and moan and cringe every time we look at the exchange rate. We're sad that we'll be leaving the house we've so lovingly restored and the town that's adopted us. But part of us still shouts "YES!!! WE DID IT! WE LIVED OUR DREAM!", and now we know that what lies ahead is simply our NEXT adventure.

We're ready...how about you??? Have YOU lived your dream? Taken a chance? Thrown caution to the wind? What's the worst that could happen? For us, selling our house isn't an admission of failure, but rather a recognition that it's time to move on to the next house in the next place, wherever that may be. Isn't life exciting and full of surprises?