On Living the Dream
My husband and I have this dream. . .
It involves one day traveling across the country in an RV. An Airstream to be precise.
I’m not sure when or how the dream began but for several years now, when we talk about the future we usually think about the Airstream.
I know to many that might sound like a nightmare, traveling in a tight space with only one small bathroom, what?!?! But to us it sounds awesome. Like really awesome!
Well I thought it might be fun to get a sneak peek at our dream and so two weekends ago we were able to spend two nights in a 25ft Airstream Flying Cloud.
Now let me tell you the week before heading to our trip my family came down with the flu so I was a little worried that that our not feeling 100% might affect the awesomeness of trip but still we left the kids with grandma and headed south.
We stopped for lunch at one of our favorite little spots in Pescadero and had a yummy bowl of soup to help us mend. We made plans and shared dreams. . .
Then we got down to the Santa Cruz/Monterey KOA where we were to spend the weekend.
And you guys, it was SO fun! Even with the flu, we got to lounge around and watch movies. We ate pizza at the beach and felt the warm sun on our faces (my apologies to our dear friends in the colder regions, I don’t mean to rub it in). We made a fire in the evening and sipped on a glass of wine.
It’s totally still the dream!
I think for both my husband and I there’s there are many things that appeal about our “dream”; going on adventures, taking in all of God’s beauty, exploring new and interesting places, living simply and not being overwhelmed with “stuff”.
However, I realize that although we aren’t ready to make such a purchase and leave it all behind to go travel, there are ways we can live the dream today.
My hubby gets his adventure and exploration fixes by planning monthly camping trips. You guys, he just took our 5 year old on a camping trip this past weekend. To Angel Island. Camping. With a 5 yr old. On an island. Talk about adventure. . .
For me, I am really trying to live a more simplified life starting now. That Airstream IS small so in order to be realistic about whether or not we can make it a reality we need to start living it now; meaning our present habits need to be aligned with future RV living so that we’re not living in a huge space with tons of things and then one day have to figure out how to live with less.
We can’t live in a way that places a high value on material possessions and having more “things” and then expect that “one day” we just won’t care about them or be dependent on having all different kinds of knick knacks for every possible situation. I need to be OK with only having a few pairs of jeans and a couple of pairs of shoes NOW or there’s no way I can expect I will be “one day”.
That would be hard.
So for the last few weeks we have been purging, getting rid of bags for donations, getting a bulk item trash pick-up, having our kids declutter. I just finished reading Clutter Free by Kathi Lipp and it is GOOD, really good. She has a lot of great tips for getting rid of clutter and has some great insight as to WHY we end up accumulating so much stuff. I definitely recommend it if you’re trying to live “clutter free” as well.
Also, our “dream” won’t be cheap. We need to be financially responsible now so that one day we can afford to get our own Airstream and pay for all of the costs associated with it. Meaning the dream just won’t happen all on its own. It requires planning and intention; and also( my “theme” for the year) discipline.
I wholeheartedly believe God places dreams in our hearts for a reason. They are a part of what makes us unique and reflect His character. I don’t know exactly when we’ll get the airstream but I know we aren’t meant to just live on hold waiting for it to happen.
God wants us to live with adventure and creativity, with simplicity and joy. And while we look forward to one day experiencing those things on a 25ft Flying Cloud; the journey towards the dream is actually happening right now.
How about you friends, what’s your “one day” dream? Are there ways you can start living it now? Would love to hear about it.
I really love this post, and how your dream translates into taking care of the things or people or clutter in life now! This is such good food for thought.