“But still the clever north wind was not satisfied. It spoke to Vianne of towns yet to be visited, friends in need yet to be discovered, battles yet to be fought…” — Chocolat

Five years ago, I named this work North Wind Elopements. I chose it because it described something I already recognized. That pull. That restlessness. The feeling that there was more out there – more people to meet, more stories to hear, more life to live.

The name has changed back to my own. The wind hasn’t.

I’ve lived in six countries. The Netherlands. Switzerland. France. Spain. Italy. Malta. I speak six languages. I kept moving toward mountains and places where I wanted to stay a little longer.

I didn’t plan a life around any of it. I moved, and then moved again. I learned new languages. Made friends from scratch. Learned how different people eat, argue, celebrate, make a home.

I always moved to live more.

Now I’m rooted. The Netherlands. My husband has a local practice here. Two sons in school.

And this work lets me keep following that pull. I travel seasonally to the Swiss Alps, Italy, and other parts of Europe. I meet couples. I hear why they’re choosing this. I spend days with them in mountains. We hike, fly, or float together. We laugh. We talk.

You can’t spend days outside with people without getting to know them.

This work is just the shape my life has always taken.

I didn’t build a life around this work. I found work inside the life I was already living.