On reflection - I think the flooding of the flat has been a good thing. Maybe not from a financial point of view, but from the point of view of getting rid of 75% of the crap that I’ve been dragging along with me, each time I move from place to place. All of my possessions now take up less than half of a Ford Transit SWB van.
I think people place too high a value on the superficial things they collect. You have yourself and that’s about all you need, if you live by yourself. I will certainly be taking the line - that if I haven’t used something for a year - then it will either get binned, sold or given away.
The most precious thing that I got upset about losing was the first book my Grandpa bought for me - Lord of the Rings; I’ve had it for nearly 25 years. I also lost the pictures of my pre-adoptive family, but I haven’t had them that long, so paradoxically I’m not too emotional about them.
Have a good luck at those boxes of stuff that you carry around - imagine losing them to flooding and if it doesn’t worry you that much - chuck ‘em out!