When Andrew originally announced his resignation from work, this article was released. Since then, we’ve encountered a number of interesting questions. We know it’s not every day that an almost-forty year old guy with a family decides to take a break to reassess his life and career, and inevitably, many of the questions have a dark tone about them – which we meet with a little humor, since the feeling we have about the next three months is the absolute opposite of “dark.” Most of our descriptive words include”freedom,” “joy,” “right priorities,”and “leap of faith.”

Q: Was Andrew fired from his job at SunTrust? 

A: No. Since 2004, when we left our jobs in Atlanta to travel abroad for four months, he’s been committed to the idea of taking a sabbatical every 7-10 years (Towles has come around), which makes this one somewhat overdue. In today’s society, the ability to take such a break, especially a mid-career break, is a really difficult thing to do. Resigning from a place where he’d loved working for eighteen years was not something either of us weighed lightly, and Andrew felt it was very important, once we’d made the decision, to “leave well.”

Q: Does Andrew have a terminal disease?

A:  A favorite client rushed to the bank upon hearing of the resignation to make sure Andrew was OK. Thankfully, he’s just fine – if only a little over-committed to his dreams.

Q: Did Andrew steal money from the bank? 

A: Really? No! And yes, someone actually asked this question.

Q: Do you have a trust fund?

A: No. But if someone would like to start one for us, that would be great.

Q: So you’re just burning through savings?

A: Yep. Note that the dream was born in 2004.

Q: Does Andrew have a new job lined up? 

A: No – there’s nothing in his back pocket, although a lot of options, primarily in the music industry, have emerged since his resignation. We’re excited to have the time to talk about the next chapter without the “noise” and pace of juggling work & family demands.

Q: How does Towles feel about this? 

A: She’s excited and nervous. Taking on 8,000 miles in the car with three little kids will not always feel like a “vacation,” but the long-term benefits are going to be amazing.

Q: How do your kids feel about this? 

A: They’re really too young to understand what a big deal this is from an adult’s perspective, but they’re super excited about this summer’s adventures. Some natural anxieties have popped up, such as, “What if one of us gets lost?” (the trip sounds really big!), etc.

Q: Where will you be this fall?

A: We’re committed to Nashville, where we’ve grown more and more connected to our intersecting communities of church/school/work, since moving here from Atlanta in 2009.