Canned conversations

Moving house is one of those times in life where you end up having the same conversation millions of times. It goes like this:

1. Them: I can’t believe you’re moving! Oh my god.
2. Me: I know! I never thought we would do it, but the last year has just been insane, we basically can’t afford to live in London anymore.
3. Them: Don’t get me started… I bet you’re so busy with the arrangements!
4. Me: Yep – we have a flat, a nursery, a job, the movers are booked, but there’s a lot left to do.
5. Them: Well, good luck with it all. I’d love to visit you, I’ve never been to Finland.
6. Me: You must! Just do it in the summer.
7. Them: Are you going to live close to your family?
8. Me: Closer – they live about two hours away, so we’ll see more of them for sure.

This is the trunk conversation and then there are a couple of variations of the rest of it – one is about Cal and how he is going to manage it, one if about how long I have lived outside of Finland for and one is about the kids’ language proficiency.

I remember having the same feeling many times before on the cusp of some life change – getting engaged, having a baby, changing jobs, trying to buy a house. I don’t resent that people essentially want to know the same things, and I’m sure I participate in these ritualistic conversations from the other side myself. I suppose that, while I feel bad giving the same lines to everyone, they’re hearing it for the first time, so they’re not aware of being in a canned conversation.