Yesterday may have sealed our fate. We signed an offer on our mountain dream property – 8 acres of lush moderate topography ripe with moss, ferns, mountain laurel and featuring two rushing creeks. But maybe the most fabulous feature is the small pond and the breathtaking winding drive to reach the modest cabin that is ideally located in the center of the property.
You’re never too old to set another goal or dream another dream ~ CS Lewis
The musty, moldy, dark cabin was built in 1945 and remodeled in 1965. Besides enjoying a view of the pond (once much overgrown vegetation is tamed), there is absolutely nothing else remarkable or redeeming about the home. In a nutshell, the place needs gutting to bring it back to it’s modest glory days of the 40s.
If the deal goes through, we will be moving from 3100sf to 1200 in the main cabin. But there is also an additional guest cabin that boasts almost 900sf. The guest cabin may be slightly more livable, but it too, will require much sweat equity to be the adorable place we’re already envisioning with our well-worn rose colored glasses.
I’m extremely anxious today…anxious with conflicting, non-stop thoughts racing through my head. We have lived in our current home over 11 years and have grown comfortable and a little lazy. I am trying mightily to will my overweight 57yo self into going one more round (this will be our 20th move and 9th home remodel). My desk is covered in to-do lists and my Pinterest boards are blowing up.
This may be the most life-impacting decision my husband and I have pulled in our 41 years together – and we’ve pulled some doozies! We have lived twice out of the country; a 4 year stint in beautiful Puebla, Mexico and then almost 5 years in Shanghai, China. And while we purchased our current home to serve as our retirement nest we are driven to fulfill our life-long desire of owning secluded mountain property to develop and to manage as we please – on a modest budget.
Keith and I met in high school and from the very beginning of our deep friendship our shared yearning was the call of the mountains. Both our souls are at rest with the rhythms of the Blue Ridge. Our experiences have mirrored literally and figuratively the stubborn but forgiving nature of the highs and lows of these steadfast worn hills.
We may be bat shit crazy…
…I’ve thought it and said it aloud hundreds of times since entertaining purchasing the land and then writing the formal offer. But I uttered that same sentiment before moving to Mexico, China, and Granny Squirrel (an entry for another time). And in each case, our “crazies” ended up enriching our lives beyond measure.
So – welcome to yonderways – a dream destination and a state of mind that has taken us a better part of our combined lifetimes to realize. My intentions are to share our experiences, good and bad, as we hunker down to transform the cabin and ourselves into our mountain forever home.
donna
