I’m pretty sure that most of us have our own Promised Land that we yearn for. A land flowing with our own version of milk & honey. I have actively started searching for what our life will be like once we finish up our time in Cambodia . With our oldest two kids rapidly approaching their teens I feel the need to provide them with some semblance of a social life. Something that sadly can’t be done in rural Cambodia .
Thankfully my husband seems to be on the same page as me when it comes to our future existence. We both long to be part of a community. A place where families have the time to be part of each others lives. Spontaneous meals. Lots of time wrestling out the questions of life through lively chats. Kids having access to a whole bunch of ‘aunts & uncles’. Focusing on the simple things in life and not getting caught up in the ‘get fest’ of consumer society. On top of that being able to eat local food and growing a lot of it ourselves would be highly sought after bonuses. Too much to ask for??
As it turned out our search began on the 1/1/11. Not a bad date to begin. Our Holy Grail began in the hills of Queensland . After three days we came away with our heads spinning. Yes the option of natural living was there...but the communal thing was sadly lacking. We then had a mini visit to inner city Brisbane where we wouldn’t have the option of nature...but the communal thing seemed to be thriving. On top of that there was the whole social justice aspect that our family seems to be drawn to. Perfect! The excitement lasted about 12 hours. Until I got online to look for real estate and nearly passed out when I saw the current property prices.
All this highlighted to me that no matter how much we yearn for community...we don’t want it to come at the cost of financial stress either.
So now our search has pretty much been narrowed down to this:
Communal Living (with a social justice twist if possible)
Affordable Living (with a comfortable twist if possible)
Too much to ask for???
It seems so.
But what I have to ask myself is this. Surely there are lots of individuals & families like us? People who have an intolerance to mainstream affluenza. People who crave the same ideals that we do. Thing is, I don’t know where to find them. I’m tempted to get two massive posters. Some paint. Then in big letters “HONK IF YOU CRAVE COMMUNITY.” Hang that around my neck and see who I can attract.
In the meantime my Inner Emo is alive and well. Surfacing throughout the day singing songs of loneliness and longing.
By the rivers of Adelaide I sat down and wept.