Finding Familiarity on the Road
This week we finally slowed down—and it felt so good.
The past month has been one long stretch of movement. We’ve always been heading somewhere: down to Arizona, back up to Colorado for service, getting the service done. But this week? No destination. No deadline. Just us, our usual weekly obligations, and nowhere we had to be.
That freedom let us do something we hadn’t done before: stay in the same campsite for three full nights. A new record. And it made such a difference. We had time to cook real dinners, go on bike rides, get some paddleboarding in. Usually, when we’re moving every day or two, something gets sacrificed—exercise, a meal, rest. There’s just not enough time in the day to work and pack up and drive and scout campsites and still live the way we want to.
Three nights ended up feeling like the sweet spot. Less than that and things feel a little chaotic—we’re constantly catching up. But more than that and we start to get antsy, ready for a new view. Funny, right? That three days is all it takes before we start itching for something different. We lived in the same house with the same views for five years and barely questioned it. So what is it that makes us feel restless so quickly now? Maybe it’s the freedom we know we have to leave and find somewhere new and equally as beautiful. Or maybe it’s that a campsite never really feels like home in the same way—a place to stay, not a place to settle. I haven’t figured that part out yet. Still mulling it over.
Speaking of home, Jacob and I had a conversation this week that stuck with me. I asked him, “Does the EarthRoamer feel like home to you?” We both said yes, instantly. It’s a small space, but it’s ours. It’s familiar. It’s comforting. I remember it took me years to feel that way in our house—probably because we moved in with a hodgepodge of Craigslist furniture and entire rooms we left empty behind closed doors until we could afford to furnish them. Eventually, once we made it feel like us, it clicked. The EarthRoamer clicked faster. Maybe because we wanted it so much. Maybe because there wasn’t much to decorate or fuss over. Maybe because the whole point of it was to feel like home, even when we’re far from it.
In a funny way, spending time in Leadville and Twin Lakes again made this stretch of Colorado feel familiar, too. We’d driven on these roads before. Seen the signs. Passed the same stores and trailheads. It doesn’t mean we know the place—not even close—but it’s a different feeling to leave somewhere and realize you could talk about it now if someone asked. You could picture it. Begin to understand it. At the same time, part of the magic of this lifestyle is going to places for the first time. That rush of wonder when the scenery is completely new.
So, to sum it up: we slowed down. We got to catch our breath. And we’re loving it out here.