"It's okay to be happy with a calm life.". I read these words on a facebook site the other day. I believe they were written by Sue Fitzmaurice. I would not want to use someone's quote without giving them credit. Anyway, it got me to think a little about a calm life. What exactly is a calm life, what does it look like, how do I get it??
As some of you already know, this is our second time to enter the full-time lifestyle. This time came differently than last time. We actually thought we had a calm life. I mean sitting on the front porch, visiting a certain restaurant for lunch nearly every day just to get out and actually have something to do and interact with people.....isn't that calm? Or maybe that is boring??? All I know is Mike and I both felt like something was missing...we just couldn't put our finger on it.
Everyone knows it's good to stay active, be busy and involved in something.....we weren't. We just did the same things over and over all the time and being restless inside. One day we both asked ourselves, "why don't we full-time again?". Can we do this! Can we go back? Why not? We weren't giving up much by staying. So after much praying....we listed our house. Forty-eight hours later we had our asking price by way of a cash sale.
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| This was our motorhome when we full-timed our first time |
We didn't want a large motorhome this time, Mike had a situation with his left eye that has left him legally blind in that eye. His depth perception is not great and is definitely not good for driving a motorhome. We decided to truly simplify our lives and travel in a smaller RV that we could both drive, park in any spot we desired and tow without investing in a very large truck.
This is what we wanted in our next RV. We want to explore national parks, national forest and even do some off the grid type camping. Our style had changed and what we wanted from the lifestyle had changed. That's when we discovered the double hull molded fiberglass trailer called Oliver. We had ours built equipped with every option available which included 320 watt solar with a 2000 watt Xantrex inverter....yes, we can go off grid now. The tanks are enclosed and with dual pane windows we are four season.
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| This is the bottom hull with holding tanks. The inside hull is placed on top of this. |
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The inside floor hull...
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| Our 23.5 ft. Oliver Legacy Elite ll |
We can't move around quite as much as many can or as much as we would like. Since I had an encounter with cancer I have to see my doctor every three months for two years. This March 14th marks one year. After two years we become a little freer and I only see the doctor every six months. This means our travels will be spaced between doctor visits. That's ok because, you see, we aren't just sitting on the front porch any longer.
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| Peace comes from the inward, not circumstances |
I've discovered that calm is not necessarily the outward circumstances, calm is inside.
We walk in the campground wherever we are and enjoy the beauty God created. We talk to the people we meet along the way and every now and then we still eat out for lunch. Old habits are hard to break. We have even started to capture some of these moments "through the lens." We sit outside and read and spend quiet time in the Word with God and enjoy a late night fire in the firepit.
I would say our lives are calm but most importantly WE are calm.
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| Be still and know that I am God...Psalm 46:10 |
It certainly feels good to be home. Thank you for joining us on this journey called life and we look forward to following your journeys.
Beautifully said. You never know what is around the corner so living a calm life is a worthy goal. Jim will reach his five year cancer free goal in May and we go to once a year check ups. It's a wondetful feeling.
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ReplyDeleteWhat a positive and inspiring post. We have felt the calm you enjoy in Usery Mts. Just seeing all the beauty that God has blessed us with is such a joy.
It doesn't how big your RV is or how expensive. If it is what you feel comfortable in, then it is the right size. So glad y'all are enjoying your second time at fulltiming.
Somehow we missed your second launch into full-timing. Congratulations! You're absolutely right! Calm IS a state of being; and how wonderful you have found that peace and contentment as you continue to discover and enjoy God's beautiful creation and HIS peace. Looking forward to going on your journey with you.
ReplyDeleteSomehow we missed your second launch into full-timing. Congratulations! How wonderful to have a second opportunity to enjoy it. You're absolutely right. Calm is a state of being. So glad you have found that calm, and you are able enjoy God's creation and HIS peace. We will continue to enjoy following your journey.
ReplyDeleteCalm but busy is the way to go:) After leaving fulll time, we now travel in a much smaller motorhome about five months or so a year. Our next trip coming up soon will be at least three months and sure hope it will be come but fun.
ReplyDeletemagnificent post....very well said....I enjoy reading your posts which are most enlightening and thought provoking...thanks for sharing...and your photography is the icing on the cake. :)) Horst sends
ReplyDeleteVery "calming" post. What type of vehicle do you use to tow your Oliver? We are "downsizing"-recently getting rid of our F-250 diesel and now have a Nissan Frontier...wondering if that would be sufficient for Oliver towing. Any thoughts would be appreciated.
ReplyDeleteReally nice post. I, too, seek calm and contentment in our full-time travels and work situations. I am much calmer than I was before we left home. I used to ask myself, "are we just going to continue on this treadmill and grow old in this house without doing anything else?" The answer turned out to be no. Here's to calm!!
ReplyDeleteI well remember when you gave up full timing and bought a house. At the time I thought, why???? But as you might know we did the same thing in December. It felt right.
ReplyDeleteSo here we are...house owners again. RVing on a part-time basis. But, like you, we don't know what lies ahead. Will we get tired of it? Don't know. Will we get the urge? Don't know.
We are currently in GA on a NOMADS project. We will see where God leads us. Quite a trip... this life.