Commentary on Alternative Living

Hello!

As promised I am writing everyday.  I asked a friend for a suggestion and they suggested first the conspiracy to assassinate Abraham Lincoln; and then  the emergence of people living in vans.  Ok... I don't know anything about either of those topics.  But I do believe there always have been lots of power dynamics in politics, and Abraham Lincoln did shake things up a bit, so I believe it.  I believe there must have been a conspiracy against him.  And people living in vans...  I didn't know that was emerging, but it makes sense.  You have all of your belongings with you, and you can go anywhere you want.  You're not tied down to one location.  I can resonate with that, there was a point in my life, I think all of my 20's, where if you told me I could only live in one place the rest of my life, that would trigger instant anxiety and depression.  The only way I was able to stay in one place for several years, was because I had a goal I wanted to achieve: getting my degree; or I knew when it was going to end, and I had another adventure planned.

Staying in one place can trigger many things.  For one, when you stay in one place for a long time, you start to develop your routine.  Unless you are very disciplined at keeping variety in your life, which I think takes a good amount of effort.  Personally I found it easier to work really hard and buy tickets to other countries, and start my life over again, than to stay in one place; makes perfect sense right??  When you stay in one place the people around you naturally begin to expect consistency from you.  And if you are the type that likes or needs a very high degree of novelty, you'll start to run up against each other.  I do believe that most people in this boat prefer to leave than to learn how to get along with the people that prefer consistency.

What also happens when your life becomes more consistent is that your "stuff" starts to show up.  If you don't want to confront your "stuff" then you have to change your external world in order to avoid your internal world.  When there is change, chaos or novelty you are suddenly "out of" or "safe" from whatever emotional situation was beginning to creep up.  When I recognized this pattern in myself, I quit traveling as much, and became intentional about trying to establish my life in one place.  I became intentional and committed to facing my "stuff"  Now that is my favorite thing to do.  No doubt travel will forever be a part of my life, but it's not in the same way anymore.  

And living in a van is a lot cheaper than paying rent or a mortgage.  One a van is cheaper than a house, and two you just have less stuff.  When you have less things, there is less to maintain - less stress.  You are also naturally forced to have greater connection with the outside world, rather than having the ability to curl up on the couch and watch tv (shutting out the outside world).  To many people having a greater connection with the outside world is truly living.

With society in general becoming more and more expensive, more and more people recognizing that they are not happy in their 9-5 "should" life, it makes sense that there is an emergence in alternative styles of living, like living out of a van, or a tiny house.  OR you could go full extreme minimalist and be like James Altucher and live with only what fits in your backpack.  Very inspiring, but I don't have any desire to live like that.  Check out his story, its fascinating.

What can we take away form people that are choosing a more nomadic lifestyle?  

1. What can you do today to make your life a little more interesting?  Learn something, try something you have never done before, get rid of some things... There are a couple ideas.

2.  What are you running away from?  Instead of making big external changes, go into that pain feel it, see what it is wanting you to know.  From my own emotional journey I have learned that these painful emotions are only coming up for you to see because it is safe for you to see them now.  Yes, they can be extremely painful, but if you go into it, if you feel it, give it compassion, attention and care, your life will get SO much better once you've "healed or intergrated" that part of you.  Its magical.  I do believe getting help like a therapist or coach is a wonderful thing.  I have had both.  

Sending you love, and may your life get more exciting without the need to make really big external changes.​