Throughout life our priorities change. When we are children, we just want to be adults. Then, suddenly we ARE adults. Careers, family, and our status in life drive us. We strive for being the best in the areas that are important to us. Some choose careers first, some choose family first, some just survive. We each define our own “best life”, choosing through the decades as we age what we perceive to be our first priority.
I was widowed at 58 and while I owned, free and clear, the house in the location my late husband and I had chosen for me, I wanted to travel. I spent most of the following year traveling around the country on my motorcycle, riding over 27k miles through 42 states. When I settled back into the house in November, I realized how much I loved traveling. But reality crept in. With no income, I would need to work to finance my travel. But if I worked, I wouldn’t have time to travel. So I ended up working until I turned sixty when I qualified for Social Security as a widow, I proceeded to sell my house and everything in it to become a full-time RVer. A new priority!
Fast forward to a year later when I met my now husband, and we traveled the country by RV, seeing so many things and enjoying ourselves. We also cruised – the first to the Panama Canal, then to Alaska. Over the next fifteen years we went on thirty-seven cruises. That had become our vacation priority. Most cruises allowed my hubby to scuba dive, meaning we went to a lot of the same Caribbean ports. But that was okay with me. I did the excursions I wanted the first or second time around, then I wrote my mystery books while in ports.
Hubby had two life-long dreams. One was to travel all of Route 66 like his family did when he was a kid. The other was to build or restore a project vehicle. We rode our motorcycles the entire Route 66 back in Sep/Oct 2013 – seven weeks. Amazing journey and I got to turn age 66 while riding my Harley-Davidson motorcycle ON Rt 66.
The other dream has taken longer. When we searched for a house back in 2016-2017, we knew we wanted enough land that he could build a big pole barn as a garage. We found the right house and location but still planned to be snowbirds in the winter. That never happened – priorities. The hobby barn is 85% done, it still needs insulation and he is still working on building the office/bathroom space. But it’s been in use for the last year. This year he found his project car. Two lifelong dreams fulfilled!
When we settled down in our “new to us” house, it was only ten years old. That was eight years ago. Believe me, an eighteen year old house is not the same as a ten year old one. Last summer we replaced the deck. This year it’s new windows, new patio furniture and grill for the deck, and new landscaping. Plus a new toilet in the guest bath and a new fire-safe door between the garage and utility room. The old toilet and door will go to the office/bath space in hubby’s hobby barn. AND we are saving to buy out the lease for hubby’s new truck, the lease ends in a little over two years.
In order to do all this, cruising is over. We initially had booked two cruises, Florida to Vancouver BC via the Panama Canal, then Alaska. We cancelled that and booked a shorter cruise to the ABC islands in the Caribbean. Deciding to do the windows, we cancelled that as well. The more we discussed it, the more we realized our priorities had changed. For at least this year and next, travel will be via autos.
We are in our mid-late 70s and trying not to slow down too much. But we have acknowledged that our priorities are changing — and that’s okay.
I admire all your energy and experiences – and love hearing how all your new priorities are progressing!
Glad you enjoyed it, thanks for stopping by!
I understand the changing of priorities. I never thought to be back in a house after we started full timing, but I fell in love with NM and its climate, which is so good to my Fibromyalgia.
Then, three years ago, we found the house we want to die in. This house has everything we ever dreamed of but more. It’s meant that traveling is pretty much out, except for trips back to TN to see family and a few short ones here and there.
But that’s ok. We have four furkids, our beautiful house, our wonderful garden just big enough for us, and a community of friends.
I do miss traveling, I won’t lie. There were still places I wanted to get to, like England. But I have no regrets.
I didn’t even mention learning to ride, then giving it up. That will be a separate blog post someday. I’d love to see more of the world, but it just takes so much energy (and money).