K Turner
Active Member
- Time of past OR future Camino
- August-October 2019 CF
My husband (ExiledSW) and I just wanted to share some big changes in our lives since returning from our Camino in October 2019. This forum showed us tremendous support before and during the journey, and we are grateful to everyone here. (My apologies for the post's length!)
Three weeks ago, we became full-time residents in our renovated 1992 pop-up camper. It has been a challenge living in such a small space, what with two adults, a 17 year old, three dogs, and a snake. We talked about doing something like this for years, but after our life-changing experience on the Camino, we knew the time was right to start the process. We cleaned out our 2,200+ square foot home, put it up for sale in January, and sold it in under 24 hours. Our youngest is graduating high school at the end of May, so we are staying locally in the pop-up until then. After that, we are moving 1700 miles/2735 km away. We are going to build a small cabin on a few acres of land.
We currently live in a city of over a million people. I grew up 2,000 miles away in a rural area, while my husband is a born and raised local here in the southwestern United States. We have been here nearly 18 years and as time passed, we realized we just aren’t happy in our surroundings.
During our Camino, we learned so much about ourselves and about one another, even after twenty years together. Living out of our backpacks for six weeks, having no idea where we would sleep each night, where we would eat, it was a challenge, mentally, physically, and emotionally. We also learned that the stuff that filled our home is exactly that: just “stuff.” We were perfectly happy simply having what was in our packs. Everything else takes up space as unnecessary luxuries. Once we were home and took a look around, we questioned why we had all this stuff that truly does not make a difference in our lives.
It was time to let go. We had a yard sale, sold items online, and made dozens of trips to local charity shops. There were times when we fought emotions, wanting to hold onto some items that had been with us for years, such as things given to us by friends and family. We kept a couple things, but we donated nearly everything after coming to the realization that it wasn’t about an object itself: it’s about the story and memory behind it. We do have a storage unit, since the camper can’t hold much and it will be a couple months before the big move. It is for basic furniture and household items, and is amazing to see how little is left after getting rid of at least 80% of what was in our home.
Many people have asked us if we are sad to have said good-bye to our home and most of our belongings. Honestly, we expected to feel that way a bit, but have been pleasantly surprised to find we do not feel that way at all. We loved our house and what we had, but it was time for them to serve someone else. It is amazing to not feel weighed down by all these things, and incredible we didn't realize we felt that way in the first place. There are challenging times ahead, to be certain, but we are ready.
It was the Camino though that helped us realize our priorities, and it was where we found the courage to set our new path into action.
Edited to add our new camper door decal!
Three weeks ago, we became full-time residents in our renovated 1992 pop-up camper. It has been a challenge living in such a small space, what with two adults, a 17 year old, three dogs, and a snake. We talked about doing something like this for years, but after our life-changing experience on the Camino, we knew the time was right to start the process. We cleaned out our 2,200+ square foot home, put it up for sale in January, and sold it in under 24 hours. Our youngest is graduating high school at the end of May, so we are staying locally in the pop-up until then. After that, we are moving 1700 miles/2735 km away. We are going to build a small cabin on a few acres of land.
We currently live in a city of over a million people. I grew up 2,000 miles away in a rural area, while my husband is a born and raised local here in the southwestern United States. We have been here nearly 18 years and as time passed, we realized we just aren’t happy in our surroundings.
During our Camino, we learned so much about ourselves and about one another, even after twenty years together. Living out of our backpacks for six weeks, having no idea where we would sleep each night, where we would eat, it was a challenge, mentally, physically, and emotionally. We also learned that the stuff that filled our home is exactly that: just “stuff.” We were perfectly happy simply having what was in our packs. Everything else takes up space as unnecessary luxuries. Once we were home and took a look around, we questioned why we had all this stuff that truly does not make a difference in our lives.
It was time to let go. We had a yard sale, sold items online, and made dozens of trips to local charity shops. There were times when we fought emotions, wanting to hold onto some items that had been with us for years, such as things given to us by friends and family. We kept a couple things, but we donated nearly everything after coming to the realization that it wasn’t about an object itself: it’s about the story and memory behind it. We do have a storage unit, since the camper can’t hold much and it will be a couple months before the big move. It is for basic furniture and household items, and is amazing to see how little is left after getting rid of at least 80% of what was in our home.
Many people have asked us if we are sad to have said good-bye to our home and most of our belongings. Honestly, we expected to feel that way a bit, but have been pleasantly surprised to find we do not feel that way at all. We loved our house and what we had, but it was time for them to serve someone else. It is amazing to not feel weighed down by all these things, and incredible we didn't realize we felt that way in the first place. There are challenging times ahead, to be certain, but we are ready.
It was the Camino though that helped us realize our priorities, and it was where we found the courage to set our new path into action.
Edited to add our new camper door decal!
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