Coming Full Circle
And, closing a few of them that had been left open.
There is something about Coming Full Circle. Finalizing pieces of ourselves or our lives. Completing rings that had been left open.
So often in life we go the full circle. Off we wander this way or that, even for years, but one way or another we often find ourselves coming back to where we started from, or somewhere symbolically similar. There are both major and minor circles to walk and live — www.inspirationandchai.com
We left Anacortes, WA on August 12, 2021, hitting the road full-time in Betty Jo (the Airstream). This was the beginning of an adventure. A new chapter in our life. A new vision of a future. The plan was not to return. But plans aren’t plans, they are really just intentions, or so my husband reminds me often.
Here we are…back where it all started a little over a year ago when we divested ourselves of all our possessions and left a life behind. Only, it was not really behind us was it. We left, but we also left some things unresolved.
We returned for medical reasons. It is one of the drawbacks of RVing full-time, you often have to return to your hometown to receive medical care. Medical Insurance has limitations on the road, unless you pay out-of-pocket. We chose summer to return, it is the busiest season for RVing so it made sense to find a place and stay stationary while everyone else was on the road.
It all made sense — the reason we were returning. Then why the trepidation? At first, I thought it was because I was anxious about the medical procedures I knew was coming. But I soon realized it was more than that. I left some things unresolved, things I preferred not to deal with before we left. I also felt like, and I know it is unfounded, but I felt like it was ending — our short journey on the road. I know it is only a temporary stop and we were not confined to stay but what if it wasn’t a temporary stop? I felt the wanderlust inside of me screaming “NO, don’t stop.” I wanted to turn around and head back to Utah or some other place. I decided then I would need to reward myself by doing short jaunts over the summer. This would keep the wanderlust somewhat happy and remind me of the joys in life. Besides, if we stay too long, we might get rusty and be newbies again when we hit the road. LOL!
I came to realize that I needed to close some circles before I can move on to the next chapter. The last nine months on the road gave me the time needed to reconcile with chronic stress and emotions. The downtime to recover and renew. It also revealed that I am strong enough now to resolve what circles needed to be closed. Otherwise, the next chapter will just include negative energy and will hold me back. Moving forward, I can then appreciate the journey more. I will be able to celebrate the accomplishments and be raring to go for what is next.
We often need to understand where we were in order to know where we are going.
As we approached the west coast I noticed a pattern of circles that were soon to be closed.
- The map of our journey. We traveled from the PNW corner across the northern portion of the U.S., then down to the most southern tip in Florida. We then traveled from the east to the west via the south. Completing a loop.
2. When we hit the road in August, our first night was at Wanapum State Park in Washington state. For our journey back to Anacortes, our last nights were at Wanapum State Park.
3. When we moved into Betty Jo (the Airstream) we had settled her in at the Swinomish Casino Rv Park in Anacortes. When we returned, I reserved a site here. We ended up with the exact same site we were in when we left.
4. I left a stressful job and not exactly on the best of terms. They asked me to return temporarily and help with a specific project. My reaction was to say no, but I gave it some deep thought and decided that for many reasons I needed to do this. This is one circle that needed to be completed and closed on a good note.
We spent almost sixteen years of our life in the small town of Anacortes. We were rooted and had made some deep connections. But like all things in life, the town was changing, and so were we. We will leave (eventually) but we will have a deeper appreciation for the life we had here and the people who made it so special.
