STARLIGHT, STAR BRIGHT

When I was a little girl, we traveled a lot.  We'd take my dad's 1980 Chevy Chevette all over the Northwest United States.  In those days, seat belt laws were lax and my folks would put my sleeping bag and a pillow on top of our luggage in the hatchback.  I'd lay there and look up at the stars repeating the same rhyme over and over:

Starlight, star bright, First star I see tonight, I wish I may, I wish I might, Have the wish I wish tonight...

Inevitably, I would wish to be a princess with fancy gowns and a beautiful palace.  I'd smile and curtsy knowingly to my adoring subjects.  "Oh, thank you," I'd say as they lavished compliments about my attire or plush decor... 

My wishes and dreams evolved over the years, as maturity allowed. A university education was beyond my grasp; but, I worked hard and had the opportunity to move up in my career at a time when experience was valued as much as education.  Life, of course, had other plans.  Mike and I fell in love and I moved to Canada when we married in 2001.  We didn't have much, but we had hope.  Sydne was born in 2003 and Nic in 2005.  With each year our wealth has grown with love as it's currency.  Even so, we've wanted more for our children.  A home of our own has always seemed out of reach.

I've never pegged myself as an optimist; although, I do try at least outwardly to be as positive as I can.  Inside, though, and in some ways I feel I can speak for Mike also, it's tough not to go to a very dark low place.  So many times I sit and think about all of the "ifs."  

If only I had gotten a degree. If only I had saved more money.  If only we had waited to have children until we were financially stable.  If only we had done x, y, z... 

I ponder the notion of the "haves" and "have nots," of minimum wage and cost of living. I don't have a solution for society, though, so I don't see much sense in complaining.  I just want to find a solution for us.

So, you see, I wish I could say that our only motivation for working toward building a tiny home was that of minimalist living and leaving a smaller footprint on this planet: but, that is not the case.  We all have dreams; and, I believe that the dream of owning a home should be something that we can all achieve.  Perhaps we just need to reevaluate what that looks like.  

I don't need that palace I wished for so long ago. I'm not much of a gown person anyway. All I need is a place to spend time with the ones I love... a place where my children can look out the windows at night in the safety of their own rooms and wish upon a star.