“I was not born for one corner; the whole world is my native land.” -Seneca
I don’t just believe this quote. I feel it. I am in love with our beautiful planet. The world is a gift filled with life, adventure, and beauty. Wonderful things await those who are willing to travel and experience this gift firsthand. I want these things for my children. I want them to have friends in every land and favorite places across the sea; to taste new flavors, see new sights, and hear new sounds; to know that this world was made for them, borders can be crossed, different is good, and change can open up doors. I want to broaden their horizons and open their minds to this gift, this world… our native land.
Moving to Mexico was one of the best decisions our family has ever made. It may not last forever but while we are here, living a dream, we plan to enjoy it. What brought us here was not good. It was a bad situation that we made the best of. After many difficult years dealing with the effects of a brain injury, my husband was granted disability from the US government. Although we received a monthly payment from the government for his disability, we were not happy or satisfied with our life. We were so very tired of the stress, including all of our material possessions. We felt weighed down and our shoulders were sore from the burden we carried. We realized the need to simplify our lives.
With that in mind, we decided to move to Mexico. The cost-of-living was lower then the US, my husband Brad would not need to work and his health would improve, we could spend more time together as a family, and we could spend more time in our ministry helping others better their lives. So far, all of these hopes for our move to Mexico have proven true. We were in a Spanish congregation in the US for three and a half years and that has been very beneficial in our transition to Mexico. Not only being able to speak a bit of Spanish, but also being familiar with the Spanish culture has made our move easier then expected. We have been here for over ten months and we love it. We hope to remain here for several happy years.
I knew that we had found a home at the end of our Belize trip in April. Belize is an English-speaking country with many expats. We saw many new, wonderful, and unforgettable places. Unfortunately we were sick from the heat and our stomachs did not handle the Belizean bugs very well. Not to mention, the car trouble we had during our month long visit.
When our stay was up and we were getting ready to cross the Belize / Mexico border, I was very happy to be headed back into Mexico. Everyone was ready to be home. Home to Morelia, Michoacan, Mexico! Home to our own beds. Home to our fraccionamiento (or subdivision). Home to our temperate climate. Home to our congregation. Home! It was real. We found our home in Mexico.
“There is no place like home” and “home is where the heart is”. True quotes. Home may change through the years. There are too many adventures to be had to limit our home to one place. We were made to love the earth and all its beauty. But right now our hearts are in Mexico. The people are friendly, the food is mouth-watering good, and the scenery is diverse and vast. We have big plans to see the world and we may not always reside here. But for now, Mexico feels like home.
Signing off,
Tina
This is an original post to World Moms Blog by Tina Marie Ernspiker. Tina can be found blogging over at Los Gringos Locos. She is also on Facebook and Twitter.
Photo credit to the author.
What a lovely post, Tina, and how wonderful that you are sharing something *positive* about Mexico! Far too often it seems as if Mexico is a place everyone is trying to “escape” and that the USA is the “promised land”. I’m really glad you went the other way and escaped the pressures of the US for a good life in Mexico! 🙂
I thought this was just lovely, too. Love that you are able to spend more time together as a family!
Tina,
I love learning more about you and your family and about your adventure! My daughter’s dream is to visit Mexico City because she was so inspired by her Spanish teacher at school. I hope to get there to visit one day! We will be living vicariously through your adventure!
Jen 🙂
I loved reading about how you guys ended up in Mexico. I so love what Seneca said. I look forward to more of your stories from Mexico.
I can relate to that! We didn’t move to another country, but we did move from a very luxureous house towards a more cheap house that needs a lot of fixing up to do, because we just wanted more freedom to enjoy that home, as a family, in stead of working all the time to pay for the expensive one. Everyone thought we were crazy, but it was the best decision we ever made!
Thank ladies for reading!! I enjoyed all of your comments. Have a wonderful week 🙂
Tina, I admire your family’s courage and ability to pick up and relocate like that! Wishing you all the best in Mexico and look forward to your future posts!