Navigating Change on US-71, The Boston Mountain Loop: Thoughts on Relocation and the Importance of Personal Goals

Dear Henry,

I’ve often wondered why, every time we move, we do. Sometimes the reasons are clear and unavoidable. At other times, the purpose is murky, and I’m left trying to make sense of why we had to uproot our lives two states away. I think I've figured out this move.

Six years ago, had you asked me, I would have told you that I planned to live in the Ozarks for the rest of my life, leaving only to travel. However, Fish’s company then hired a new regional director, and she and my husband were simply not a good match. What followed was a quick relocation from Arkansas to Tulsa, and from there, she seemed determined to sabotage his career at every turn. His decision to accept a position in Roanoke was, more than anything, a decision to leave her region, and it turned out to be one of the best choices we could’ve made.

Without that move, we never would have found our cabin in the woods by a creek, something we’d always dreamed about. Nor would we have discovered the Friends of Old Lick, an organization that would come to mean a great deal to me.

Fast forward to August 2025. Fish received a fantastic opportunity with a brand-new company, and we made the leap. Just two days into his new job, we learned that the same regional director had been promoted to vice president, and had we stayed, her new position would have destroyed his career. That news brought a moment of deep gratitude, and we both paused to thank God for the blessing of good timing and better paths.

Before the move, and before I fully understood the issues at his previous job, I confided in a friend, trying to find meaning in this sudden shift. She suggested that maybe I needed to be away, and that was the purpose of this move. You see, I help. A lot. Too much, if I’m being honest, often at the expense of my own work.

While we were living in Roanoke, I volunteered with the Friends of Old Lick, the Roanoke Master Gardeners, and served daily Mass as sacristan. Until my hip injury, I also worked part-time at a bookstore with a very tempting employee discount. (My building of the Library of the Apocalypse can be directly attributed to that job.) I was even taking a class (or two).

All worthwhile endeavors. But in giving so much of myself to these projects, I’d begun to neglect my own: the pilgrimages, road trips, and The Everyday Patriot Project. I was so busy building a library that I’d stopped reading it, and The Bucket List Book Adventure had been indefinitely postponed.

These are not things I want to leave undone. And maybe—just maybe—my friend was right.

While I’ll continue to support the Friends of Old Lick from afar, I won’t be taking on any new commitments for now. This next season will be about my own journey, my own voice, and my own work.

Stay tuned for my latest travels—and I can’t wait to tell you what I think of Plato’s Republic.

xoxo a.d. elliott

PS: You can check out my YouTube Video here: https://youtu.be/4thSjg-_9H8

****** *********************************

a.d. elliott is a wanderer, photographer, and storyteller currently in Tonitown, Arkansas. 

In addition to her travel writings at www.takethebackroads.com, you can also read her book reviews at www.riteoffancy.com and US military biographies at www.everydaypatriot.com

Her online photography gallery can be found at shop.takethebackroads.com

#TaketheBackRoads

Like my page? Please consider supporting my work by visiting my sponsors and webshop or buying me a cup of coffee!