By: PJ
[This is third in a series on self-care and life perspective]
One of my MISSION STATEMENT goals was to focus more on self-care. For me, this is very important because in the past I often put SELF-CARE at the bottom of my list in order to care for others first. Looking back, one of the very first self-care activities of this trip was actually prompted by some very good friends of ours (our neighbors)… and this was on our very first day of the trip!
We had been frantically trying to get rid of some of our remaining “stuff” while moving the rest of our items out of our house (not to mention cleaning it for the new owners). Clearly we underestimated how long this task would take. We thought we would have everything finished by 10am and would be on the road living our joyful life. However, it was now 2pm, and we were still scanning and shredding important documents, cleaning out the garage, and trying to get rid of a couch. We had a long drive ahead, and the day was getting away from us.
Our neighbors kept saying, “You guys are exhausted from working so hard to get everything ready. Not to mention the emotional trauma of selling and moving out of your house. Stay with us tonight. You will feel well rested in the morning and will be able to actually enjoy the first day of your trip without exhaustion.”
This advice was exactly what we all needed. Once they finally convinced us, they invited some of our other friends over. MJ, AJ, and I were able to spend quality time with all of our local friends reminiscing over pizza and beers. The kids were all playing in the backyard, and the adults were talking, laughing, and crying (mostly I was crying, but in a good way).
The next morning, everyone came over for breakfast giving us additional quality time together. We all knew it would be a long time before we would meet again face-to-face, so this quality time was invaluable.
Leaving our home in Loveland, traveling full time for a year, and eventually settling abroad sparked some pretty strong emotions. This was the first house we bought together as a married couple. We had lived here for 9 years and raised a child in this house, so selling it and getting rid of everything was bittersweet. I was excited for what was ahead (adventure, new experiences, a chance to see places I’ve always wanted to visit), but also sad for what I was about to leave behind (family, friends, our house, career, stability, routine).
Sometimes it takes the insistent observations of others to open your ears to: a) what they know is best, and b) what you are too busy to see you really need. Ironically, my neighbors’ were giving me my own advice to “stop and just be”, and this was the perfect start to my self-care journey.
For background on how my self care perspective changed leading up to this trip, see my post on TRANSITIONING FROM CAREER TO TRAVEL.
