Fertile Ground

On Moving Cross Country & Back Home Again

We sat across the brewery table from one another, bright-eyed and buzzing, trying to take in the fact that we had made it to our destination. After a very long and detailed adventure spanning almost 3 months, we had completed our cross-country move and landed in Bellingham, Washington. It was mid-October, and the colorful curtain of fall was just beginning to settle over the bayside town. We didn’t have anywhere to live just yet, but the fern-filled campground nearby had a spot that we welcomed graciously. With the hopes that it would be the last time in a while, we parked our t@bby camper in site 36 and began the search for somewhere new to call home.

 The idea of moving was a spark that grew in me over the past few years of adulthood. I had lived in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Western NC my entire life; a place that I loved and (I like to believe) loved me back. It was a place my partner Ian and I were very happy, but something was calling me elsewhere. 

 It’s not often that I know things about myself (maybe some of you can relate). I’ve unfortunately not been the best at making decisions and feeling fully confident in them. So, when I realized that there was genuine knowing within me about moving away, I took note.

I wanted to experience what it would feel like to uproot myself from the “hey y’all”, smoky mountain, red clay I was raised in, and see if I could grow in different soil. If I didn’t try, I would regret it.