We Made it a Year!
Hello Friend,
June 1st marks one full year of living in our van. When the lease on our townhouse ended, we officially moved into the van. No trial run, no practice. We didn’t even load it until the day we had to be out of the rental. We spent our first night parked two blocks away from the house we had just vacated and the reality of what we just did hit us like a tsunami. What in the f*ck did we get ourselves into?
Everything was so difficult. Pulling things out and putting them away every time we needed to use something. Climbing over each other to move around. Getting dressed without hitting our heads on the ceiling. Making sure everything was secure before we drove. Being too hot or too cold. Locating safe and legal parking spots. Managing our power. Filling up on water. Remembering to empty our gray water tank before it overflowed into our shower. Stocking our fridge every couple of days. Not to mention all the things that broke and needed fixing. It was all so much.
But eventually there came a point somewhere in the last few months when we realized that everything had gotten easier. The tasks that seemed so troublesome and irritating to us became second nature. We’ve formed habits around our new lifestyle. Where we used to have to think about every little thing we had to do, now we do them automatically. We passed the trial-and-error phase and know what actually works (and works well). At first, we thought we had to give up many of the things that used to bring us comfort and enjoyment, but now we’ve simply learned new ways to continue doing them. And in some ways, it’s even more enjoyable now.
Looking back, it’s clear now that the adjustment wasn’t uncomfortable because the things we had to do were particularly challenging, but because they were different than what we had grown accustomed to. Uprooting our entire lifestyle revealed to us just how much we relied on muscle memory, routines, and habits to carry out our daily functions. We had grown stagnant and rarely encountered situations or tasks that required us to learn new skills and adapt. So, when we had to face new ways of doing even the most menial tasks, like making coffee or even sleeping, we were overwhelmed.
But humans are adaptable and resilient, and we have grown so much throughout this experience. We’ve become more comfortable with facing the unknown and more confident in our abilities. We’ve learned new ways of problem-solving, collaborating, and communicating. We’ve gained new skills, knowledge, and insights about ourselves.
So now as we sit in our van, miles up some backwoods trail and contentedly sipping our coffee while we each begin our next chapters, we must ask ourselves – what else are we capable of?
With love,
Court + Tim
