It’s a strange thing to voluntarily give up a huge part of your identity. My entire life I’ve been *Rachel from Bozeman, Montana.” My artwork, family, friends, favorite mountains to ski and trails to bike, all centered around one place until a month ago. I wanted to fly the 4,000 miles home immediately after we moved to Norway. I felt so out of place, so removed from such a massive part of my identity- from the (ephemeral) confidence of “knowing it all” that can come from being in a place where everything is easy and familiar. I truly felt that if I wasn’t THAT version of myself, the one the people knew/ connected with/ liked- that I wouldn’t be relevant or anymore... Since those first hard weeks, I’ve felt more alive, more me, and more centered and grounded than I can ever remember being. Sometimes you have to just throw yourself in the fire to know what it feels like to rise from the ashes, and feel brand new. I’ve had countless fragile moments since being here. So many “first day of middle school” butterflies over simple things like grocery shopping and meeting new people. But there’s something beautiful about the unknown- about having fewer expectations. Like this audio says: “I think happiness is about letting go of what you thought your life was supposed to be, and just embracing where you are now, and how special it is.” This is not how I imagined my life when I was younger, but I’m so proud we’ve had the courage to pursue this chapter. I’m learning so much about myself, about who I’ve been and how it has all lead to this decision to live in Norway. And I hope that if your life is turning out differently than you thought, that you can see the beauty in it. 📷: from a 1 am rollerblade on the coast last week. I spent a whole hour just laughing and blading up and down this stretch of coastline. It meant a lot 🫶 P.s. this tee shirt is one of our CAMP tees, and it will be available very soon @rachel.pohl.art ! #lofoten #rachelpohlart #midnightsun #solstice #beautifuldestinations #beachsunset #rollerblading #wildflowers #campcollection