Living a life of a nomad is a challenge as you have to detach yourself emotionally from everything around you. You don't stay in one place for a long period of time. You leave, move on, and just follow wherever your parents head.
I'm a nomad. And I live every waking moment of my life with full of butterflies in my stomach. Not literally, of course. But you see my point: it's annoying, frustrating, uncomfortable, but all at the same time, exciting.
Every two or three years, my family and I move to another part of the world. We pack and unpack the boxes filled with our belongings. Though the process is tedious, it's a sign that my life is changing, leaving the old behind and entering a new phase of life in a whole new environment. Great. Will I ever settle down and experience all of these in a settled manner?
Every day is a challenge. When you finally feel like you have made yourself at home, you realize that it's time to leave. And having to start everything all over again in a strange place you have never been before is indeed stressful.
Well, I'm not saying that moving to different places is always a scary thing, but there is a point where you just can't handle the pressure anymore. Sure! Moving to another place is exciting at the beginning! It feels like as if you have instantaneously become one of those adventurers in adventure movies; it's like you are embarking on a new journey that will bring you to the world's deepest secrets and unknowns. You are meeting people who speak different languages, wear different clothes, and have different customs. It's exciting when you start thinking what to do with your life with these people you have never met before. I'm sorry to break it up, but those sparkly and exciting feelings you get are only temporary. Once you set your feet on a new soil, everything around you feels like an alien. The worst part is when nostalgia kicks in. It's crucial to learn how to overcome this feeling because often times, it can result in depression. It's up to you whether you move on or not.
Moving to another place every couple of years requires tremendous amount of preparations and energy. You must be mentally and physically prepared, which is the hardest part of all. All of these preparations are time consuming, but in my case, I have to learn to be fully prepared under limited time. Because we are told where to move on a short notice, I don't have much time to think through and organize my thoughts and feelings. By then, I would be busy packing my clothes and belongings.
Life of a nomad isn't always stressful, fortunately. Instead of frowning upon weird traditions and customs, your face becomes interested. You grow open-minded and appreciative of other cultures. Over the years, you will realize that you have become a risk-taker. I, for instance, wouldn't have known humus on pita breads tasted incredibly amazing, despite my hate for chickpeas -- no offense to bean-lovers.
However, I sometimes wish to know what a settled lifestyle feels like. I know for sure that you grow intimate with everything around you. I bet you get to know what type of person your neighbor is before you leave. And most importantly, you get to make your own secret hiding places where nobody else knows except you.