It sounds obvious, but the feeling of safety is so important to mental health, and it's hard to truly understand just how foundational it is until you're without it. Nights spent wondering if someone might knock or if all your belongings might vanish while you're running errands wear on you. Van life made us appreciate the invisible comfort of feeling secure as well as the physical realities of being clean and accessing running water. It made us think a lot about the unhoused experience and the toll lack of safety can take on the mindset.

If you have the resources to support the unhoused near you, please do so. 

Even wanderers need a little routine.  We we were moving too fast, and needed to slow down to really enjoy life on the road. Working full time and moving every few days was not sustainable, so we switched to a longer stay model where we moved every few weeks. This allowed us to better keep our daily routines that matter to us like meditation and physical movement. 

The van is a lifestyle fast, a reminder that you don’t need much to feel full. I have enough if I'm living by my values, enjoying sunshine on my face, hearing the laughter of people around me, and surrounding myself with love.

The best landscapes mean nothing without people to laugh with, cook with, or simply exist alongside. On the road and in life, community is what turns shelter into home.