Sunday - Day 14 - Perspective

My family spent today at the beach in Cape Canaveral with my sister and her family on the beach. They are visiting from NY this week. We had a fabulous day and I thoroughly enjoyed seeing everyone. It's important for me that the boys are close to my family considering we live so far away. I love seeing them all together, lots of sweet smiles and laughter. It's truly heartwarming and I cherish the times we spend together.

As we are all sitting on the beach my sister, out of the blue, asks me. "So, is it scary living in a trailer park when it's just you and the boys?" I found her question both intriguing and a bit disturbing because it stuck with me.

I shared a few things about living in our camper earlier in the day and in no way did I allude to any fear or concern about the environment. I of course assured her not at all, it's very safe and we have our killer dog Rabbit protecting us.

But I suppose the biggest fallacy is she referred to our campground as a 'trailer park'. My initial reaction was to be appalled, especially when she asked, "well what's the difference?" But after putting her comment into perspective I found some humor in it, was she actually telling people her sister lived in a trailer park? I simply had to grin.

There's a big difference if you've ever seen a trailer park. Trailer parks are a group of mobile homes that are set up as permanent fixtures. People can either rent or own these homes as a low cost alternative to purchasing a traditional home. All of the stereotyped trailer park jokes probably have an element of truth to them.

Campgrounds on the other hand could have permanent residents, but most everyone can pick up and go at anytime. Many are used as vacation destinations. Everyone owns their own camper and people pay a daily or monthly fee which includes water, electricity, cable and sewerage, Wifi is usually free. People can also tent camp or use pop-up campers in designated areas. There are common areas, showers, a camp connivence/souvenir store. There are lots of amenities like a pool, playground, basketball courts, and the fancy ones may even have a game/pool room for the kids and adults.

I clarify this as it's important to share I myself had never seen a trailer park until I moved out of NY over 10 years ago. And I most definitely didn't understand the dynamics of campground until I went camping and eventually owned a camper.

So, when asked what's the difference? I would have to say, "If I don't like my neighbor I can simple pick up and move."