Your daughter turns 18, and carves a path of her own, and having been a single parent her whole life, you realize that you must also carve a path of your own. It is scarey when you have built your entire world around your only child and traveled to the ends of the earth and back. You always referred to her as your co-pilot, because she was always the one in the passenger seat and you always saw yourselves as the perfect team. You always knew that one day she would strike out on her own, but you never realized it would be so soon. Even though she still tells you she wasn't ready, you know in your heart, as all parents do, that she was, and it was for the best. Because now she is 19, and she is thriving. Isn't that what we as parents strive for in our children? We may not always agree with the choices and decisions that they make in their lives and we can't help but want to "fix" everything for them, but we know that in order for them to grow and to thrive as adults, we must give them their wings.
Those same rules apply to us as parents. We must also thrive once we set our children free. This has been perhaps the most difficult challenge of all, learning to live my life for me. Putting myself first, minus the guilt. Making my own path. Learning to trust myself and follow my heart. Learning when to say when where my daughter is concerned. Being there for her, without allowing her to control me and the decisions I make for myself. Making healthy decisions for myself. Living my life on my terms and doing the things that make me happy. I have earned this. This is my time.
"When you betray of that of which you love, you betray yourself".
So I am here sharing my path, the one I have now carved for myself. Some may consider my life to be a bit unorthodox, and I would have to agree with them. But it doesn't really matter because I am happy and my life is very manageable. I guess you just get to a certain age when it really no longer matters what other people think. If doing what you want and living the way you want makes you happy, then so it should be.
I have been a full-time RVr for 12 years, minus a few months here and there when my health forced a retreat. After my daughter turned 18, and I found myself, by myself, I decided if I was going to be successful on the road and really live my life the way I wanted too, I would need to downsize. So I did. I sold my 34ft Motorhome and my Prius and bought a 1989 Coach House Campervan. I have owned a few other campervans over the years, so this was not a complete shock for me. It did take some getting used to at first. But mostly it was getting used to not having to share my space or energy with a hormonal teenager! Lol! The first 6 months without my daughter were the most difficult. She was really struggling and my heart ached to make things okay for her, as I had always done. But as things got better for her, things continued to get better for me.
It has now been 17 months since I first left Key West in my campervan and I have logged over 33,000 miles! I have been up to Acadia National Park and around the U.S. three times. I spent last winter in Baja camping on the beaches and enjoying the baby whales, and last summer in Alaska. All of which I did entirely by myself in my van! I have seen some of the most amazing wildlife you could ever possibly dream about and witnessed some of the most beautiful landscapes imaginable.
Even though I have been and RVr for years and years, I have accomplished so much over these past 17 months. It really is mind boggling. I don't think I have ever enjoyed being on the road as much as I do now. I guess my van is to blame for that lol! It is so much easier to get around in. Much more cost effective than any other RV I have ever own. It is easy and comfortable to drive and easy to park. I rarely have any trouble finding camping spots even during season, which works great for me, because I am very spontaneous. I don't like to stay any one place longer than a week and I rarely know exactly where I am going next. I just know that I AM going and I cant wait!!
So signing off for now. More to come later.
"Butterflies know no borders. Butterflies are free".
