Achieving my dreams didn’t have to cost a lot

Seven years ago, I landed in the desert on a whim. My partner Austin and I moved into our tent without a place to call home. The two of us had a few hundred dollars to our name and debt to worry about.

It didn’t matter. This place was everything to us, and we took a huge risk moving there without a plan. It was our dream to live in Arizona and we were going to make it happen no matter what.

Although vanlife or an RV would have been nice, we couldn’t afford such luxuries at the time. All we had was our sedan, a tent, bare necessities, and of course we figured out a way to pile two snowboards, three musical instruments, our dog, and art supplies in the crevices between the most important things. Luckily, I figured out how to create a portable kitchen so I could cook for us every night.

My dreams back then are my reality now, through the winding trail ascending desert buttes and falling into deep canyons. I didn’t know it would happen this way.

Not only did we find a place to live, but during our tumultuous journey we found freedom being self employed together and living frugally in a way that we have much free time to play. We went from living in a tent to having our own RV to call home.

No, we’re not digital nomads. We don’t make a living online. We braved out the journey of becoming tradespeople and serve the local homeowners in the area. Never did I think it would be so fulfilling cleaning windows and getting to meet people from all walks of life.

It took several years and life lessons to get here, but we’re so grateful. It is a miracle someone helped us out of our tent. It was a miracle the pandemic happened and we had to move away, back to where we came from. It was a miracle someone loaned us their home for three years so we could build a business. It was a miracle they changed their mind and wanted their house back, causing us to buy a camper and move back to the place we love.

And it was a miracle people wanted our service in our version of paradise that allows us to stay here indefinitely.

This dream wasn’t easy to get. The first step was easy driving the 24 hours and setting up our tent on public land seven years ago, but every step after that we met challenge after challenge.

Being homeless, living in the desert. Moving in with someone and doing work exchange (working for free in exchange for a place to live, in our case, a tiny laundry room in a garage). My father passing suddenly. Grief. Being outcast. The discomfort of living with someone resentful of you. Failing at digital income. The fear of the pandemic. The shame of moving back home to my mother in law’s basement. The joy and sheer disappointment of having my dream home and then it being taken away from me. Accidentally joining a cult. Isolation. Injuries, surgeries. Expanding life then contracting it on a moments notice. Psychosis. Addiction. Taking a chance after heartbreak. Starting the business over in a new area not one, or two, or three, but four times.

But we’re here, we made it. All because we kept saying yes to our dreams and continued taking chances for what we wanted.

We didn’t know this would become our home when we initially visited in 2017. We were just like the other tourists roaming the red rocks. Even when we moved in our tent, I had no idea if it would work or not but I vowed to never go back to Wisconsin, that we’d make this work somehow.

I know my story isn’t remarkable in the sense that I haven’t toured the world, had success with my own endeavors of being a writer/artist, bought a house or made a killing with money.

But what is remarkable is that any dream is possible without the need of a ton of money.

Having our own means to earn an income doesn’t make us rich monetarily, but it does make us wealthy in our lifestyle of freedom. We make just enough to pay our bills, buy healthy food, and make repairs when needed. Our lifestyle is cheap and we can’t buy “things” simply because we live in less than 100 square feet.

We don’t have a lot to invest into our future financially, but we have time and passion to pursue hobbies that could take care of us in our old age. What I mean is, we’re working on other dreams that have the potential to earn us money when we’re older (in my case, a writer, in Austin’s, a painter).

We don’t have a huge luxurious home, but we do have a tiny little vessel to call our own that we can keep forever if we choose. And we get to decide where we live because wheels on your home makes it impermanent. If we get bored here, we can just leave and find somewhere else to start over or pick up where we left off.

Big dreams can come in little packages, I’ve learned. Although I’m not raking in the dough and piling money into investments, I’m content, happy even that I can live a minimal stress life and spend most of my time doing what I love. Everyone deserves to live a life they love.

If there’s anything I wish to pass on to others yearning to live a life of their dreams, it’s this. A slow life is a good life. A life lived frugally and minimalistic can be fulfilling to the soul. Wanting less materialistically can result in having more experientially. And any dream is possible with a few hundred dollars, even if it takes time and effort.

Having a mindset that the dream will happen no matter what helped us too. I always say, “There’s no way this isn’t happening.” If we dream it, it will be a reality because dreams are gifts from the Unknown, the Universe, God. If it’s given to you, chances are it’s meant for you and it’s worth pursuing for the sake of your heart and soul. All you have to do is take a step into that territory.

Remember that your dreams are important and give them some space. The first step is a plan, then acting it out. The movie of your life will begin once you take that first step of your plan. What happens next? That’s for you to find out!

Have you ever taken a chance on your dreams, and what happened?

Thanks for reading 🙂

Ashley