Why I Travel

Written by Kimmie

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June 29, 2021

“The greatest adventure is what lies ahead”

J.R.R. Tolkien

I’ve contemplated that question a lot over the last several months. I got into travel nursing for the money, there’s no question about that. I never dreamed it would take us to traveling as a family.

Peter used to talk about tiny living or “living off the grid” and I would mostly laugh or tell him he was crazy. But in 2020, something in me changed. Working on the front lines, I felt like we were surrounded by death and sickness constantly. I mean, I always was, working in an ER….but then it was like IN YOUR FACE with sickness and death. And not just Covid. I have known far too many people diagnosed with one terminal disease or another. People taken from this life far too soon. Or not even terminal…but…suddenly and without any warning.

You hear the phrase “live life to the fullest” so often, it becomes like white noise. What does it even mean to live life to the fullest? It’s different for everyone of course. But after being home bound (except for work) and glued to my couch because of anxiety and depression, I realized I definitely was NOT living life to the fullest the way *I* wanted to. I was happiest when I was with my kids and experiencing new things with them…whether it was a new place, a new food, or a new activity, their joy fed mine. And I knew, If life was taken from me tomorrow, I needed to know I had not spent my final days on a couch, sad and inactive. And I needed my kids to have a good example of what it means to LIVE.

If you told me even 5 years ago that I would pack up my family, buy a travel trailer, and move us to the other side of the country for several months, I wouldn’t have believed a word. I’m not brave, and I’m not that adventurous! Buuut…I do know that each morning since I did it, I’m waking up with a smile and with joy.

It isn’t easy. So far, I’ve nearly cried from the clutter of trying to get things organized, I’ve cussed about cold showers (before we got the hot water heater working) and having to drive 30 minutes to the nearest laundromat, and I’ve almost given up at least three times.

But I’m super lucky that the kids are absolutely loving this new way of living, and that I have a husband who is more supportive than I ever gave him credit for. If it weren’t for him ( he basically made this whole trailer livable for all of us), I definitely would have cut bait by now.