Why Nashville felt like home even though I'd never been there

I actually wanted to write a travelogue. With pictures, experiences, the places – simply putting everything into words. I started three times.

And every time I realized: that's not what it's about at all.

It is June 2026 and I have been sitting in front of this document for an hour trying to explain what happened in Nashville.

The first thing that comes to mind is: It wasn't a trip. It was a memory. Of myself.

This might sound spiritual or like something from a coaching program. But I really mean it in a concrete way.

We didn't get enough sleep. I ate fast food again, even though I knew it wasn't good for my body. There were people I knew immediately: they belong in my life.

And others where I knew just as quickly: we simply experience the world very differently. People where I had to take another deep breath to avoid running screaming through Nashville.

That kind of behavior would have bothered me in the past. Hardly anymore. Can you imagine that I'm only now realizing what that actually means? How much energy I used to put into it?

Costa Rica brought me back to myself. It was the rite of passage, as I wrote in the newsletter — there I rediscovered what is important to me.

Peace. Nature. Trust. Vastness.

But also the meltdown of my nervous system. And not forgetting the potholes in the roads, which were symbolic of Marc's and my relationship problems.

But we have both come a long way during this time. To ourselves, as individuals ( What do I want? Do I want THIS? Do I want this person? Do I want these problems? ) and to ourselves as a couple.

As you can see from our social media posts: We overcame the potholes. Only the rental car didn't.

Nashville did something else. Harder to define.

As we sat with the Root founders at their homes, in restaurants, or at their headquarters, doing yoga together, talking about health, visions, and life—the same thought kept coming back to me: I can be who I am here. Here, I am accepted and valued for who I am. I don't have to pretend; I can speak freely about my thoughts. I ask uncomfortable questions, and no one reacts strangely. I can be enthusiastic about things without having to justify myself.

All of that is possible. And since our layover in New York and our arrival here in Nashville, I feel at home. I feel accepted.

Perhaps we really do spend our whole lives searching for a place. What we're actually searching for is a feeling. The feeling of being allowed to arrive—just as we are, not as we should be.

Authenticity is almost a buzzword these days. But it doesn't wear out. Just like the phrase "I love you." That doesn't wear out—it's enduring. It's expression. Being authentic isn't a trend, but the only way we can create an honest world. Instead of AI models and intrigue.

Over the next 60 days, I'll take you with me. Not to a map of Nashville. But to the moments, thoughts, and conversations that have made this week something I'll probably never forget.

Whether you find yourself in one of the stories — I bet you will. For me: Nashville felt like home.

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