Last night on my way home I bumped into a bloke I worked with years ago. When he asked me what I was doing I told him I lived in a van and was parked on the seafront. He choked on his cigarette and said “so you’re a pikey then?”
“No,” I replied, “I’m a new traveller. We respect the land and don’t leave broken fridges and other bits of litter lying around.”
He nodded and said “so you’re not working then?”
“I work for the council and I’m a writer,” I replied, “and 90% of people who live in vans around here work.”
He took all this quite well, and then I told him that I myself had come into van dwelling with preconceptions. He still looked a bit dazed but he took it in his stride then quickly said goodbye.
I feel as though I may have given him some food for thought. Perhaps next time he sees someone hanging out of their van he won’t be so quick to pass a judgement on them. I don’t blame him for his prejudices though. I think it is a rare person who does not jump to conclusions about van dwellers if he has never considered that way of life as an option. But it’s nice to play a part in the education of others.
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