The work-life-nomad balance is fun! Within 24 hours in a new setting, we have settled into a new life. One of the about 500 different lives we have lived within the past seven+ years of travelling full time. At this point in time, Tarragona is waiting with five weeks of community, as this is our first Village event.
The settling in from the van to the Airbnb is an intense 2 hours of chaotic moving everything from the van to in this case the 4th floor (while the van parked illegaly in on the sidewalk), wondering if it is truly worth it to bring all of the stuff, followed by 24 hours of establishing a life, including popping to the supermarket 5 times, finding the good running route, yoga spot, morning coffee sunshine time and place, and washing four loads of laundry after just under a week on the road.
Oh! Yes, all of this, while recording two podcasts, sending one newsletter, walking to the van 4 times for forgotten stuff, having one work-call online and another in the next city over, meeting people in the street, having fellow vanlifers over for a shower, doing each our daily chunk of studying - with the grand decorative night adventure of spending 90 minutes looking for my glasses between 11.30 pm and 1 am, as they got lost in the chaos of moving from van to apartment.
The work-life-nomad balance includes a lot of moving around. A lot of adapting. A lot of driving in our case, as we are based out of our van. And sometimes, we stop to ask ourselves if it is worth it? A lot of time goes into all of this. Now, two of the children are studying in an organised way, the load is somewhat larger, and it can, while carrying stuff up to the fourth floor, seem a bit too much. Like it seemed a lot to drive the 2000K in just 3 days.
But it IS worth it, I guarantee it. In the midst of this, adapting is a centrepiece to get clear on values and to ensure passions will get enough space. With so many moving parts, it becomes very obvious what is important. Important enough to stay on the agenda, important enough to peak through the tiredness and the chaos. When every day life is shuffled, only what is important stays on the schedule. We get to truly feel who we are, as we do not blend with our context, and it becomes obvious what we take with us, what we bring to the table, and what we really really want.
So, yes: We did math for several hours on the first night, until the brains could not hold any more. And yes, we did bring four musical instruments to the fourth floor, and we will practice throughout the month. We will read a poem every day, enjoy the good coffee from our own espresso machine, and the kombucha, golden chai, and all the other elements that make us feel at home.
At the same time, the Village project opens tomorrow, and about 120 people will join us for a month of sharing the lifestyle, moments, exploring, conversing, partying, playing, growing, and enjoying.
It may be overwhelming, but it will more likely just be fun.
Comments