A little something for my Brat friends

From the book "Home Sweet Anywhere" by Lynne Martin, a woman who sold her home to travel the world with her husband in their retirement.

"...[t]he friendships we were developing in our travels were different from those at home. Most relationships start from a situational basis: work, hobbies, school, or club encounters; some last, some don't. Certainly long-standing friendships offer the comfort of shared history. But on the road, there's almost an indefinable moment when we make a connection with people who are kindred spirits.It's a chemistry almost like love, a recognition that doesn't require deep exploration to discover. Meeting other travelers far from home, in whatever country it may be, creates an atmosphere where it's possible to cut to the bones of the friendship. There are no trappings or protocols in the way of just getting to know the person for the person's sake. I inevitably feel a pang of regret when we say goodbye to a new friend whose company we've enjoyed, because although we usually do stay in touch, and try to find ways to intersect as we move around the world, we're all living such fluid lives that it's hard to know if we'll find one another again."

Having dinner in California with a friend they'd met in Florence:

"We chatted about our experiences and shared our plans for the future. Our conversation somehow seemed easier and more natural than our talks with family and friends. Of course our family was interested in our adventure; however, it seemed hard for them to relate to our free-floating life, in which we talked about meeting someone for lunch in Berlin as casually as if we were meeting them in Los Angeles or San Luis Obispo. It began to dawn on us that we had fundamentally changed since our decision to live home-free. Our world view had become larger, and our place in it more fluid. As we talked with Judy, who had lived internationally for much longer, we realized that living home-free had unfettered us in more important ways than leaving pots and pans behind. We were much more intrepid, and felt completely comfortable about being in new situations, living in countries whose languages were unknown to us, finding friends to amuse and inform us. We had more confidence in our ability to be in the world, and it certainly took a lot more drama to make us upset nowadays."

This is who I feel like I was when I moved back to the states 23 years ago. I want that again, and I want that for my kids. My friend Katrina just moved to Oslo for a year and we talked about "ruining" our kids. Do we keep them in one place their whole lives, give them rock-solid stability and a hometown? Lifetime friendships that are actually conducted in person? Or do I open up the world to them, infecting them with the need to always search for more? I think the pros and cons are roughly equal, objectively anyway. For me, I need the latter.