This idea of converting a van and going cross country after college has been the plan since sophomore year of high school. I was first inspired by youtube, then documentaries and then saw an explosion of this lifestyle during covid times. Van life has always been something I want to do as the older I get, the more I realize that experiences are what makes life great. Stuff and acquiring positions initially makes you feel good or satisfied, yet you return back to your normal homeostasis of dopamine and happiness. Taking a minimalistic lifestyle and investing in yourself and the experiences that you do leads to memories and longer satisfaction. Essentially, van life serves as a catalyst to live this lifestyle.
Another thing that is interesting to me that many people don’t realize is the idea of solitude and the comfortability you have to have being alone. To be out on the road every day without any people to talk or converse with if you choose to go solo is very interesting to me. MAV, a fellow truck-life/ youtuber, talks about how being an introvert definitely fits the van lifestyle because it serves as a way to recharge your social battery. It also just brings you happiness to have some time to yourself. For me, I always wonder how I will handle this since I do think of myself as an introvert, yet as I have grown more into myself, I find myself being extraverted in ways I didn’t think I would ever mature into becoming. This idea of solitude though, having silence to be able to write, and just being alone with my thoughts makes me giddy and excited. It becomes such a simple life and this idea of disconnecting and being able to return to nature and dig deeper within myself and my passions is what I would use van-life to do.
Since I have thought about doing this for a big chunk of my life, this summer I committed to being the summer of doing instead of planning. In my Toyota Highlander, I ripped out the back seats and starting next week, I want to put a build-in into my car so I can sleep in the back of it comfortably. Next semester or even this summer, I want to go out and camp in it. This project will serve as a mini-test run before I do the real thing. It will allow me to see if this is truly the lifestyle I want to live and allow me to test and figure out things before they become a problem in the real thing.
There is so much I want to do in my life that this is just one facet of it. I can also see the van lifestyle being my weekend escape where I find to escape and reconnect with nature by doing trips up into the mountains. Instead of living in it for a year, maybe just doing weekend trips might be what I choose to do instead. There are so many options…
With this idea of doing instead of planning, I have also come to a realization this summer. Comparing yourself to what others are doing in their life never always leads you to feeling less than. Rushing into events and plans that you are not ready for also can feel unfulfilling. Instead, trust that when your time comes and you are ready to do a trip, you will know and jump in full force. Being at UVM, it is hard to have this mentality since everyone I surround myself with are such go getters. I feel like they have done so much more in their 20 years of life than me, yet reminding myself that when my time comes, I will wholeheartedly jump in definitely helps. Stop comparing and live a life that makes YOU happy.
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