A man in the camper

A man in the camper. No traveling and no camping – living. On the outskirts of the town, near the wasteland. At night, a strong wind blows and the sea is heard nearby.

He is living there from the time we moved into our home. Means, a few years already. Sometimes, I see him next to his camper and greet him, and each time, his empty eyes touch me. 

You say, romantic?But try to imagine yourself in this cottage – not for vacation, but forever.What does it feel like to be a hermit?

At the day you can get lost between other people, be like everyone: walks on the streets, lying on the beach, chatting with passersby, trying to make friends because you have no close friends to chat with because everyone considers you being strange: too free, too individualistic, and freak.

Maybe strangers are a little jealous of the opportunity not to work (if you are living on savings) or to work only occasionally like an online job because the camper does not require much money. Maybe they stare at him a little bit – after all, non-standard people are unpredictable, nobody knows what they can come up with tomorrow, maybe will leave for new places?

His days do not change and there is no weekend – here is an eternal weekend, with the sun shining and the sea breaking at his feet – like yesterday, like tomorrow, like always.

And when the sun goes down, people are scattered around the houses, families are having dinner, neighbors spread rumors at the doorway, kids in cribs are listening to tales, but the hermit still sitting in the cafe till the town falls asleep. He slowly walks down the dark gravel road to the desert, stops at his camper, looks briefly at the stars and moves inside. Into this cave. Until the morning when he opens up again as a human.

Maybe it’s freedom, but it’s not for everyone: there is no romance here, just solitude. Such loneliness may be too difficult for the entire life, but if it is for a short time, it can be a remedy for the wounded soul or a way to find yourself if you got lost. But after that, I would love to go back to the people.

© Fortune, 2009