I complained in my last post about not having a stable place to live.  Well, technically I’m still homeless.  And I stand by my complaints.  But sometimes the bright side of a bad situation turns out to be the point of it all.  In this case, once I was able to recognize that bright side, I realized it’s what I’ve been wanting all along: freedom.

Stability would be cool.  Eventually I want to have all of my stuff in one place.  And I’d like to eliminate that uncertain pause when people ask me where I live.  But in the meantime, what have I been complaining about?  This is the perfect time to take advantage of my life with no leash.  As you may know, I thrive on opportunities to pick up and go wherever, whenever.  So I trashed that rising anxiety and purchased another plane ticket.

In the interest of building support for my nonprofit, Ancestors unKnown, this latest journey has led me from the Netherlands back to the U.S.  At the moment I’m in South Carolina, absorbing as much information as I possibly can from the elders, educators, and trail blazers.  I’ve been able to spend time with the high school students who are participating in the Ancestors program.  And I have more people holding my business card and talking about the ancestors than I ever thought possible.  This is progress that wouldn’t have been possible had I been committed to staying put.

During my first week here, I stayed in a cheap, extended stay motel.  I was happy to have a place to myself for the first time in a couple of months.  But it turned out I was merely a houseguest of the roaches.  So I found my way to the home of an 82 year-old woman who lives alone with an empty room.  I’ll admit that I was worried about the arrangement – until I realized that she and her stories are fabulous.  More than once we’ve stayed up talking past 1 a.m.

I’ll stay in Charleston for another week.  My suitcase is in the trunk of my rental car.  I’ll make several more stops in the U.S. before I head back to Amsterdam.   And although my bank account just shed a tear, Ancestors unKnown is really on its way.

Everyone has a different definition of freedom.  Turns out this is mine.