When we started out on this crazy epic adventure last November we didn't tell many people that Josh had left his job at the end of October. The original thought was that Josh would continue working remotely while we traveled but while staying a week in a rented RV in Myrtle Beach, Josh working in a tiny room inside a trailer while the kids and I walked the beach, met new friends, and explored the area, we realized that if he continued working as he was then we would have this adventure and he would miss most of it. That wasn't what we wanted. We wanted a time to grow closer as a family, build a massive pile of shared memories, and experience this odyssey together.
Me: "Babe, if you wanted to quit your job, I would be ok with that."
Josh: "Really? Wow! Wait, what!? I want to quit my job but I wasn't even going to mention it, expecting you would say no."
Me: "Whoa, you were thinking about it? I thought I was crazy and was going to try to convince you to think about it."
Josh: "But wait...does this mean we are actually considering this?"
Me: "Um...yes?"
So we went for a walk and we talked through the miles over the pros and cons, the risks and possible rewards, the "what will we tell our parents??"
"Hi, Mom. Just called to say we are jobless and moving the children into a trailer - ok? Ok, love you, bye!"
But we sat with it, and again we felt that quiet invitation. Our hand wasn't being forced. This wasn't God giving us a command. It was simply an open handed invitation to do something we aren't supposed to want to do.
To give up the job that amply supplied for our needs.
To give up the good house in the good neighborhood in the good school district.
To sell everything we'd accumulated in a dozen years together and essentially start over.
Were we crazy?
Or would it have been crazier to stay in a house that was bigger than we needed with Josh commuting an hour and a half each way to work, all the while wondering if we were winning a game we didn't even want to be playing?
Because that was the other most viable option.
And we didn't want it.
So in complete unity and with a not-really-understandable peace Josh put in his two weeks notice and we drove to Ohio to pick up our trailer.
These last few months together have been amazing. Part of me was concerned that 24/7 exposure may cause a little friction and irritation in our relationship but the opposite has occurred. We have never felt closer - to each other and to the kids.
Something else has been brewing and we've kept quiet about it except to a select few with whom we've sought counsel. The time has come though that we feel comfortable sharing what we feel is our next step.
When we arrived at our first stop, Raccoon Caverns in Chattanooga, we found our propane furnace wasn't working. You can read the blog post on that adventure but it led to us meeting two brothers who worked together as mobile RV technicians. They were friendly and helpful. Turns out they trained and were certified at the RV Tech school that also happened to produce what Josh found to be the most-helpful RV videos on YouTube. We talked with them at length and they spoke highly of the school, located in Texas. They told us about an owner's course available online and said that Josh could probably fix most of the issues on our rig after taking the online course, given the questions he was asking them and the steps he had already taken in trying to fix the furnace. They also suggested we might want to attend the school. In Texas? No thanks! But we did order the online course and looked forward to completing it.
A few stops later at Lake Eufala in Oklahoma we had a leak under our kitchen sink. We didn't have the knowledge or tools to fix the issue so we again found ourselves in need of a mobile RV technician. This time it was a husband-and-wife team who answered our call. They were kind and friendly, answering Josh's questions while talking through the repair of the sink. Then we found out that they were trained at the same school in Texas as the techs in Tennessee. As if he were answering a question that wasn't actually asked, the husband turned to Josh and said, "you can do this, if you wanted to. This is viable, you will never be out of work because these things always break. You are able to set your hours, work at your pace, be there to help people in a time of need, and travel as you do it."
Josh and I had both been silently considering this. It was a way-out-there idea. How crazy would that be? He has always been interested in working a trade and just through YouTube research he has fixed our AC, most of our vehicles, the furnace, a gas stove, a washing machine, and countless other things. He has a mind for it and when he doesn't know how to do something he knows how to ask the questions that will put him in the way of answers. I have always been impressed by this. Josh has used these skills and gifts in the digital world he found himself working in but there was always the quiet dream of being able to work with his hands, in the tangible world, and fix or create. We've also long talked about the idea, some time in the distant future, of working together in a small business or other capacity. But that was for years down the road - nearer to retirement and empty nesting. Could it possibly be for now?
A thousand small whispers have culminated into a resounding "Yes!" We actually are doing this crazy thing!
Having touched the waters of the Pacific Ocean, we are now headed back east to Texas where Josh is enrolled at an accredited RV training school and will start his training mid-February. This would have him graduating the first week of April. Our plan is to head back to the Carolinas and spend some time with family. We are then looking to potentially head north for the summer months, working as we travel.
We say all of this with eager hearts but also open hands. We do not know what the future holds. We don't even know if this will work out. We didn't have a clue of this being an option when we set out two months ago. But we are following the peace, one step at a time, and we are excited for the path we find ourselves on. Living at this pace has allowed God to get a word in - and we've been listening. We're still listening and willing to follow where He leads.
Someone "back home" recently texted - "Hope you're enjoying your vacation!" And I started laughing, realizing that we are no longer in the mindset of this being a vacation. I think we've officially become nomads.
And we couldn't be more excited.
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