Nomads No More

“Home’s where you go when you run out of homes.”
-John le Carre

2025

It was the best of times, it was the worst of times…

Somehow, I made it through 4 years of high school honors English and a few college literature classes without ever reading Great Expectations. That didn’t keep its opening line from floating through my head as I reflected on this past year. While not the worst or best chapter of my life, it was nonstop plot twists of adventure, frustration, travel, disappointment, joy, uncertainty and love, with all manner of chaos and merriment thrown in.
We moved from Kansas to Ohio to New York, and then to Charlotte when Barry left his job. We transitioned from nomads to vagabonds, taking the job search on the road for two months and traveling around the country. We sandwiched family and national parks and natural wonders and side quests between phone calls and applications and interviews. We landed back in Chattanooga for a few months, with a plan to stay there “until something happened”.

Couch surfing in my 50’s was NOT on my bingo card, but I can’t say I would change a thing about 2025. Our vagabond summer, our days of “the in-between”, have become precious memories. Our road trip was a rare gift, one that I will always treasure.
And now, at least for a time, our nomad days have come to an end, and that is a gift as well.

Because finally, the day before Thanksgiving, something happened.

Someplace New

Barry got a job offer- one that checked all the boxes, and we are moving to North Carolina! Specifically, we’ll be living in the greater Charlotte area. And the unusual part of this whole thing? We will be staying there indefinitely.

Six weeks after receiving the news, it still feels surreal.

The new job requires minimal travel, which means putting down roots, planting a flag in the ground and saying this is ours. It’s been over 20 years since we’ve made a permanent relocation, and there is much to be done! Submitting a change of address, getting a new driver’s license, and moving our belongings out of storage into a real apartment. Decorating said apartment, finding a new church family, getting lost a few times, searching out new favorite haunts and date night spots. Some of these inevitable “to-do’s” will be enjoyable, some will be intimidating, all of them part of reclaiming a place to call home. Our best friends have lived here since the 90’s and we have visited many times, so we do have a head start!
I am truly excited to turn the page and get to the next part of the story.

Fun facts about North Carolina

Going beyond the Wright brothers and being “First in Flight”, here are a few fun bits of trivia you might not know about our new state:

• Emeralds occur naturally in NC, and there is an emerald mine open to public prospecting.
• There are more salamander species in NC than anywhere in the world.
• It is the largest producer of sweet potatoes.
• The Biltmore estate is America’s largest private home, containing 250 rooms (we’ve been there before and love it 🥰)
• Babe Ruth hit his first professional home run in Fayetteville on March 7, 1914.
• Krispy Kreme donuts were created in Winston-Salem.
• Every year, on the third Saturday in June, the National Hollerin’ Contest takes place in Spivey’s Corner (population 49!), benefiting Spivey’s Corner Volunteer Fire Department.
• North Carolina has produced more American Idol finalists than any other state.
• It is against the law to use elephants to plow cotton fields. (We haven’t seen too many elephants roaming around… but somebody must have found one somewhere and tried it!😂)
• Its nickname is the Tarheel State – a term for the barefoot workers who collected sap to make tar and pitch, used in ship manufacturing in the late 1700’s.

Esse Quam Videri

In English, North Carolina’s motto translates to: “to be rather than to seem” – one of those deceptively simple phrases that grows deeper the longer you sit with it. A new beginning might tempt us toward reinvention, but esse quam videri encourages us to stay rooted in our true identity. In a world of filtered appearances and highly curated snapshots, we are reminded to choose authenticity, integrity, and truth. It’s not about looking the part—it’s about living it, about being real with ourselves, and each other.

This is good advice as we meet people in our new city and begin to make friends. Finding a different tribe feels a bit daunting – especially for this introvert!
It’s also something that I need to keep in mind as I am “setting up house” in the coming weeks.
We have found our apartment, and I am so excited to throw some paint on the walls and start decorating! Creating a space that is both beautiful and welcoming, fun and functional – this is one of my passions. A new home can stir up that familiar urge to seem put‑together: to unpack quickly, to decorate perfectly, to present a life that looks organized and seamless. Haha! The reality is that there will be patio furniture in both the living room and the dining room, while we wait on silly little things like paychecks. There will be half unpacked boxes, and multiple iterations of the funky little nook in the corner. It may take some time, but I know that this apartment will become a home that reflects the rhythms, priorities, and quirks of the two souls who live there; so I need to give myself some grace and enjoy the process.

I will keep you updated on our North Carolina adventures, and I wish you all a happy 2026! May your year be full of beautiful surprises and unforgettable moments. May you have the courage to live with authenticity. May God’s love light your path and bring you peace and joy. I am blessed to have you as a reader.
May this year be your best chapter yet!

Til next time, shine bright friends!
~Dawn 🌻