It might be said the wandering ways Leah and I have adopted are partially rooted in a chance encounter we had more than 20 years ago.

To be sure, we had already set out on a modest mission to explore the United States and, by that time, had already been to Hawaii, Yellowstone, Disney World and maybe New England. However, our new friend changed how we looked at everything.

We and our teen-age daughter planned to do some exploring of my roots around the Cherokee Nation in northeastern Oklahoma and rented a cabin inside an RV park. We walked among the RVs on Saturday morning and visited with many of the RV’ers who set up yard sales. That afternoon, we played in the swimming pool and it was there we met him.

Much of it is hazy now. For some reason, it seems like he was originally from Indiana, but he now claimed to be homeless. He made that claim with a smile.

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His full-time home was his recreational vehicle. If he told us what kind of RV he had, I no longer remember, but he did tell us about his grown children – three of them, I believe – who lived spread out across the country. He also traveled alone … widowed, I believe.

So, his retirement life was towing his home around the country, taking turns at each child’s home to spend some time before hitting the road again. I remember him talking about at least one child who had prepared a complete hookup site for his rig.

Ours was a brief meeting but a meaningful exchange. His lessons stewed within me for several years until we thought the time was right for us to set our life on wheels.

We owe a debt of gratitude to a man whose name and face we no longer remember, and we’ve also treasured the opportunities to tell other prospective wanderers that such a lifestyle is not only possible but enriching.

Our story is encompassed within this site and the Dream Chasing 101 booklet series. We welcome questions and input, as well.