Love, in 50 square feet.

Living in a tiny space with someone is admittedly difficult. We had a 3 bedroom house, with a yard, and now here we are, in a van. It takes some getting used to. And honestly, I think even getting used to it can never change the fact that it's a little crowded if both me and my wife try to walk across our house at the same time. But it's worth it. 

I had all of these grandiose ideals about moving into a van. We will get to see each other more. We can focus more on the things we actually like to do. We can spend more time caring about each other. And yeah, all of that is true. However, it is also true that when I want to step into a quiet room and meditate I don't have that luxury. When my wife wants to stay up late playing ukulele she worries about it keeping me awake.  And when we argue, there is no where to go.

When my wife and I lived in a traditional house and we argued, we could go to separate sides of the house and spend a few hours calming down, and getting over it, before we'd apologize. Argue. Cool down. Apologize. Sweep it aside. Living in a van however, it's a lot different. There is no going to our own space and calming down. There is no space. We're together, and we have to deal with what's going on. And maybe that's better.


You see, when we were living in a house, it was so easy to calm down, and push the argument aside. And a few days later we would have the same argument again. Living in a small space with someone you love requires a lot of communication. You need to understand how they are feeling exactly, and why. Because an argument in a small space is all encompassing. It's hard. You need that communication to prevent the arguments, and stop from killing each other.


I think most relationships can benefit from some tiny house living. It's the metaphorical stepping off a cliff edge, or being thrown in the pool to learn to swim. You need to learn to listen to each other, and take care of each other, or it is all going to fall apart.


We're walking though this with some bumps and bruises, but also with deeper love and understanding for each other. These are the things that make van life worth it. The experiences and growth that we come to together are worth more than anything we could buy.