I Wish I’d Known

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Do you ever find yourself saying, “I wish I’d known what I know now”?

I was actually thinking that just this morning.

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I want to tell you a little story. A 43-year-old woman in Washington state lives in a 1982 RV in the woods. Her name is Annie.

She said she didn’t plan for her life to turn out the way it has, but she seems happy living alone with her sweet dog and cat. She’s okay with not getting married and having kids.

What I wish I’d known: That I could do something like that. Go live in the woods in a 1982-era RV, where it’s just the trees, the sky, and nature.

A Traditional Path

I followed a fairly traditional pattern, as many women do. It’s what was expected. But what I should have done was ask myself, what do I want?

Oh, I wish I’d known what I know now.

I don’t begrudge having my girls. Of course I don’t. But I wish I’d realized that once they were grown, I could forge my own brand new path.

I had the kids young, so I was only about 34 when Kendra graduated from high school. And I was married.

And you know what? Looking back, I don’t think I was ever really happy being married.

It was like the shoe just didn’t quite fit. It was a little too short, a little too tight. And I just kept going through life with my foot in the same shoe.

Why? I don’t know.

Annie@Annnsvan

I wasn’t as brave as Annie. It didn’t even occur to me that I could venture out into the world and craft a new life.

Oh, I wish I’d known what I know now.

Annie’s on social media and has sponsors. But what is so special about Annie is that she didn’t plan for her life to be like it is either. It just happened.

She turned 40, then 41, then 42, and now 43, and this is her life. Her babies are her precious furbabies. They are her family.

Annie did it her own way.

Me? I let myself get bogged down with commitments and yearly holidays that made me anxious.

I ended up taking many years to get my journalism degree because, you know, life got in the way.

I followed the path of least resistance. I just went along like I knew where I was going and had a destination. But I didn’t.

I was toddling along like a little girl in her mother’s high heels. Trying not to stumble and fall.

Annie bought herself a 1982 RV in the woods and made a beautiful life for herself. If I were her, I’d be awfully proud of that.

I don’t even know her, and I’m proud of her.

Women typically try to fit a mold someone else poured for them. They tend to step into shoes that don’t fit. And they walk around for years with a sore foot and blisters forming.

Then They Grow Old…

They get sucked into a vortex that they aren’t strong enough to climb out of. Then they wake up one day, and they’ve become old.

They aren’t as strong as they once were. Their lack of balance makes them teeter on the edge of life.

They didn’t know those years were malleable when they were younger and in better shape. Before life dulled the edges of dreams they never even dared to dream.

Years pass, and they find themselves looking behind them more than they look ahead. They become acutely aware that they have far less time ahead of them, and kick themselves for not stepping out there when they were better able to.

Year after year passes without them taking a single step around that curve in the highway they can’t see around. They never got up the nerve to even try.

They are women who would never live in an Annie-like world. Never step out onto her newly built wooden deck and stare at the stars shining in the inky black sky of the woods.

Brandie

Just like Brandie, who is now plowing her way into a new life in a $1500 trailer in her parents’ yard. Leaving an old life behind and stepping out into the great unknown.

Scared, often in tears, but moving forward, even if it’s just a few feet at a time.

The other day, right before her 40th birthday, Brandie (@startingoversimply_) was working to get her bedroom in her $1500 trailer in order so she could sleep in it when she stepped on a rusty nail.

She had to go to Urgent Care to get a shot. But she came home and took up where she left off. Brandie didn’t let a rusty nail stop her. She didn’t let a birthday without a husband stop her.

What motivates those two women, Annie and Brandie, is the belief that change is possible, that life can be different once they get around that bend in the road.

They’ve figured out that you have to reach out and grab it before the window of opportunity closes and the blinds go down for good.

What smart women!

The Legacy of Dolly Parton

Dolly Parton paved her own way. She just died at age 80. Just a little thing, but with a great big beautiful voice and determination.

Because of Dolly, people around the world are grieving. Because she gave so much.

Dolly founded Imagination Library, dedicated to inspiring a love of reading by gifting books free of charge to children from birth to age five. All over the world.

What a legacy to leave behind.

Throughout her 58-year marriage to her husband, Carl Dean, the couple never welcomed children of their own. Dolly, with her great big hair, breasts, and lipstick, was a force to be reckoned with.

Carl Dean died on March 3, 2025, at the age of 82. And not even two years later, Dolly followed him.

I imagine I’ll be humming “Jolene” and “I Will Always Love You” for the next week or so.

We will all truly miss Dolly Rebecca Parton. (January 19, 1946 – August 25, 2026)

Annie + Brandie

What do you think Dolly Parton would say to Annie and Brandie?

I think she’d say: Just keep moving, and don’t stop until you figure out where you’re going.