One girl, her dog and her van.

2019 was the year I lost everything. My husband left me, and Luna (my Great Dane) homeless and hollow inside. I remember moving back into my parents and feeling heart-broken and trapped and this was before the pandemic kicked in!

Luna was six months old at the time and she got me through my worst patches, her wet nose and sweet cuddles really made me feel like life wasn't that bad. She was definitely the best looking one out of the two of us!

When the lockdown kicked in for us in the UK things were dire, I was climbing the walls and itching for something to do. So, with absolutely no renovation experience, Luna and I decided to convert a Mercedez Sprinter Van into an off grid home on wheels.

I had some savings and managed to get a good deal on the van, thankfully my Dad is a builder and has lots of experience so we recruited him to help. The conversion took us just over a month (thank god for Youtube videos) and finally Luna and I had our own space.

Now living in close quarters with a large dog isn't always a walk in the park, she farts like a trooper and dog hair gets everywhere. But she sleeps on my bed with me at night and keeps me warm, she is my person to talk to after a bad day.

When restrictions finally lifted again we had a home we could take anywhere, we were literally unleashed. We would spend weeks by the lake district or in wales and whenever we needed home comforts my parents were always there to welcome us back. I didn't realise how beautiful the UK was until we stayed in various places and sat out under the stars on warm nights.

There is nothing quite like letting your dog out in the morning and looking outside to a lake or a mountain on your doorstep. Luna has loved every minute of it. She hasn't been shut away once in all of our time travelling, it has just been us travelling together, exploring.

She makes me feel very safe. I have always been the spontaneous type, someone that likes to wake up and go for a walk before the sunrises and the world gets busy. Living alone would mean that, as a woman, that wouldn't really be safe for me. Having Luna means that no one would be able to get close enough to harm me.

There isn't anything quite like the unconditional love of a dog, someone that is always excited to see you and never too tired to listen to you talk about what went right or wrong that day. She is my family as much as anyone else and I don't think I could have gotten through these few years without her.

Great Danes are lovely breeds, they only live around seven years but they love enough to last you a lifetime. She is my baby, my child and the only thing I lived for during that horrible time in my life when everything fell apart. I hope these next four years last a lifetime because I can't imagine my world without her.

Now I have settled back down again and we have a home, we don't live in the van so much, we do still go out on adventures though at least a couple of times a month and Luna always loves to run free when we are away. After all zoomies in an empty field are better than zoomies anywhere else!

I don't believe any dog should be leashed!