When RV Life Tests You: Broken Leaf Spring, Big Hearts, and Lessons on the Road

We have officially been on the road for 3. 5 weeks at the time I am writing this. Number 1 question is: “Any regrets?”

Raw answer? No

BUT…

there have been times when I think we are at the ‘end’ of capacity to ‘learn’ new things. Learning while traveling is really a nice way to say we have had more than one or two problems that need to be solved asap.

When your home is on wheels, and the next stop awaits, solving issues demands a different level of flexibility and problem solving.

Where in a sticks and bricks home, you may have a network of locals to lean on, when on the road, everyone is a complete stranger. It is a whole new level of trust and connecting to new people to get recommendations. Sure there are google searches and reviews, but nothing beats talking to a local.

A great example of this is what we are dealing with right now.

We were on the road yesterday heading to our next destination and G said “there is smoke”. I thought he was referencing the BBQ joint we just passed in this small town. He was not. We had smoke coming from the drivers side near the wheels. People driving past started honking and pointing.

Upon pulling over, G quickly figured out our leaf spring had broken and that caused the tires to rub together creating the smoke and rubber burning smell. We were feeling VERY blessed that we were 4 miles or so away from our reserved campground! We had just finished at 2 hour drive on what was a very deserted stretch of highway. I can’t imagine if it broke then….

Once we limped our way slowly to the campground, we asked the owner if they knew of a RV repairs who deals with travel challenges like ours.

They didn’t but they did recommend to call someone who might know (and she said she would pray for us). We called/text that person but he was out elk hunting. Yet he still called us back and recommended we go to the local Farm supply store. Never ever would we have thought to go to a Farm supply shop for broken leaf springs!

We went as directed and spoke to the VERY kind and helpful people that worked there. Within an hour, they had sent a couple guys over to the campground and replaced the broken leaf spring! G and I were both so touched at their kindness and just plain ol’ decency, we shed a few tears. There is nothing lonelier than feeling stranded and overwhelmed in the middle of a strange place. It is only then that we truly see the true heart of people and experience firsthand kindness on the road.

We are very grateful to have more than a few stories like this from the past few weeks. Stories that will live in our hearts for a long time.

So therein lies the contradiction. We don’t want bad or difficult problems to happen. But it is when they do, we meet the most amazing kind hearted people. It is when we feel alone and the ‘end’ of our own capacity, the people come into our lives to remind us we are not alone. We are all connected.

FAQs

• Why?

• What were you thinking?

• Is this a smart move?

• What if you get sick? Run into problems? or your family needs you?

All valid questions to consider when giving up conventional housing for full-time RV living. The answers only need to make sense to you and your life, but because people are curious about why we chose this unconventional path, I will do my best to answer.

Why:

This not a short answer. And overtime we will likely dive into it a bit more, but here is the Coles notes version. A) I was hecka tired of the hamster wheel and working 6 months of the year to pay the government their taxes. The amount of money we needed to earn to continue to live the North American dream that had all the metrics of success, was enormous and exhausting. And this sis was tired. Soul tired. We were blessed to take many holidays to hot, sunny, beautiful places, but there was SO much more we wanted to see in our lifetime. We found an amazing Realtor who is taking care of “Boots on the Ground'“ clients in Ottawa while we deal with things that can be done remotely. It is the best of both worlds!

What were you thinking:

Honestly? I was thinking “F’ it! I would rather be broke on a hut on a beach eating rice and beans than continue to do what I was currently doing 24/7” A bit extreme I know. But I truly felt that to continue at my current pace was a death sentence. So I was thinking of this change as saving my life.

Is this a smart move:

Yes. No. Maybe. Define smart. Time will tell I suppose. I just know it was a move I felt in my very core, was the right thing to do. So it was a smart move for me, and very courageous to follow my inner calling.

What if you get sick? Run into problems? or your family needs you?

Sickness: A) We have insurance regardless of where we are.B) We are both WAY healthier since making this change. Reducing our stress about 90%, increasing activity by 300% (according to our fitness app), and are eating simply and healthy. We are in our healing era. Run into problems: Where is life are there no problems to solve? Your family needs you: We are empty nesters and all our ‘children’ are launched. If they need us, there are planes to most destinations in the North America lol….and calls, texts, and facetime is a thing. Seriously, we have spend the better part of the last decade being available and waiting for them to come home. It is time to stop waiting and go experience life!

So there you go, my our version of FAQs. I would love to hear your feedback on our answers. Good or bad. Could you make the move to full time RV living? How would you answer those FAQs?