John Muir, the author, scientist and renowned conservationist, was an absolute fanatic about nature. He climbed trees in gale-force winds to see what it might feel like to be the branches; he stood at the precipice of waterfalls to sense what the water might be feeling before its plunge. He thought nothing of walking fifty miles a day for several days at a time. And, after suffering various maladies during the years he spent away from the wilderness he loved, he claimed that one night’s sleep on Alaska’s glaciers healed him.

Muir said, “Wildness is a necessity,” and although we won’t be taking our children anywhere near the precipice of an unguarded waterfall, we agree. Something about the day-in-day-out of any routine – even the best routine – kind of kills the spirit of freedom in all of us. We cling too closely to the predictable. We are too restless to wait and see.

The noise of life and work is wearing. We are all imperfect people, doing the best that we can, but sometimes doing the best that we can, under all the pressure one can endure, means neglecting the things in life that matter the most.

And that’s why we’re going on sabbatical.

For the past seven years, we’ve lived so happily in Nashville. We’ve built our family here and set down roots.  Andrew has worked hard to make himself as indispensable as possible to an industry he didn’t even know how to break into until we moved to town. He’s enjoyed great success, and our family has thrived.

But now we’re letting it all go to get our priorities straight again.

It’s a risk, of course.

We know the trajectory our car will take, but not our hearts.  As with all adventures, we anticipate that the greater picture, the one we can’t see yet because we’ve only been given this first puzzle piece, will be so much more significant than what we have had the vision to plan so far.

We are thrilled and grateful to have the opportunity to take a break and give each day to our family.

This blog will serve as both a record for our family and for the many who have asked for a way to follow us on our journey. We will update it as regularly as we’re able, and you can subscribe via the link at the bottom of this page.

Thanks for wandering with us!