Planning to leave a stationary life and head out on a nomadic lifestyle takes lots of planning. It turns out the biggest questions aren’t about logistics, but rather more existential ones!
The other night Lena and I had a conversation that started with her asking, “So, how are we going to wash our clothes when we are living out of backpacks?” A simple question with a complex answer. One of countless, “So, what happens if/when…” questions that we have been asking ourselves for a while now.
Specifically, she was referring to our plans to walk the Camino de Santiago. At one point we had a reasonably solid date for this venture, but, well, you know: Covid. So now that journey lingers as a “to do” without a date, but it is at least partially emblematic of our plans to get out and see the world.
There definitely may be times when we live out of just backpacks. Other times perhaps it will be a backpack + suitcase occasion. It all depends.
Which gets to the heart of the matter. All of our endless questions about logistics and “How do we…” speak to the broader subject of facing the unknown. Really all of our logistical questions will ultimately have answers. Time will reveal much.
In a lot of ways those, “How do we…” questions are a way to express our uncertainty about the bigger, and less answerable, questions in our future. Questions like, “what if we don’t actually like moving around and seeing the world?”
What if our imaginations are just overly idealistic and we just think being “homeless” is appealing, when in fact it may not be so great? What if we just have tricked ourselves into believing that a nomadic lifestyle will be fascinating, when in reality we would rather be glued to the couch watching Netflix?
Will we become lost (more metaphysically speaking – but maybe literally too) without a permanent home as an anchor? What will we do? Is seeing the world enough, or will we feel unfulfilled without other duties and obligations?
Are we being too short-sighted, should we have a better plan devised for 5 and 10 years out? Will our family ties and relationships with friends wither with distance and time? Are there hidden support networks that we won’t realize that we miss until they are gone?
When it comes down to it, there are things you can plan for and things for which you cannot. I believe the key is to continue having the conversations, exploring those “What-ifs”.
Making major life changes can be daunting and sometimes a bit overwhelming. There will always be some element of self-doubt surely. But the antidote to the “What-ifs” is just another type of what-if: What if we absolutely love it?
Thing is, we won’t know until we try. So, we are going to try!
As always, we would love your thoughts and insight, please comment even if it is to just say “Hi”.
The Discerning Nomads