Josh – I lost my grandmother the other day. It was expected, as health issues had been fairly severe for quite some time, but it still leaves me with a hole. Where once I had roots, the vestiges of those roots are disappearing. One could argue that the way we live – traveling around the world staying for just weeks or months in any one place – it’s hard enough to have a sense of roots.

And it is. There are a lot of challenges to doing this whole living on the road thing. You don’t really get a chance to put down roots anywhere. We’re back in Bamberg now, where the journey basically started last summer. It’s comfortable because we know where everything is, but it’s also a little uncomfortable because it’s still not home. A fun waystation, but we’re not Germans and we’re not trying to be. We just like the beer here. And in a couple of months, off we’ll go to a new adventure, some other new crazy place.

One of the things I like about what we do is that we do get the chance to form bonds with people all over the world. Everywhere we go gets to be a home for a while, and that’s a bit different than the whirlwind sightseeing we used to do. But this whole thing has me thinking about my roots and the best ways to keep them. Technology is great, but it’s not perfect because not everybody is online as much as we are. So sometimes we have to remember to work a little harder. We still wouldn’t trade what we do for anything – it’s one heck of a way to live. Definitely a little different, just like we are.

I feel like I’ve lost part of my connection with Nova Scotia now that both of my grandparents there have passed. Of course, that had to happen, because transition is the one constant in this world. I read today that in 10 million years, long after the human race is gone, Africa will be split into two by a new ocean. Transition is constant, even if slow. Nothing lasts forever, no matter how good it is. Rest in peace, Grandma.