Homestead Bound
At 47 I’m old I guess, in technology-years anyway. I was around for the early days of blogging… 10 or so (pre-facebook-era) glorious years when strangers shared their thoughts and solicited sound advice from others. Real people (not bots) would read your wordy post and give you a thoughtful paragraph or two in response. Really! Now we are down to phrases and pictures. Our attention spans have been trained smaller and smaller. Anyway, here at least, I may try to return to a semblance of the glorious blogging days and spout out my often muddled thoughts.
A little bit about me…
The stats: Married, 47, have 2 grown kids, and recently moved several states away from my former life and family.
Homesteading is the goal. It’s funny because, it’s been my goal for so many years and now all of a sudden (post-c19) it seems half the world wants to do the same. I say more power to us!
After many, many years of getting debt free and allowing my children to sprout & grow their wings of independence, my husband and I moved to his home state of Virginia, in the Appalachians, and bought land so we could build a sustainable lifestyle. We intend to live as freely as we can and to stand our ground against a world that wants to assimilate us into their technocratic grip. We will not comply. In fact, we plan to be a part of the solution.
Our goals are to be a part of the local food movement, homesteading mini-farmers. It seems to me that, with so many people uprooting and moving to rural areas, there is a small army of such people. We will join together in new ways and create solutions to subverted supply chain issues. I’m super excited about all that stands before us. There is a revolution of rural living underway, and I am proud to be part of it.
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You’re not old at the age of 47, how dare you make such a statement, Theresa 😉Before you know it, you begin to act old. I laugh while writing this. Congratulations on making the choice to start homesteading… homesteadying… and join with others who do the same, creating solutions, methods of exchanging harvest, celebrating harvest with neighbours, outdoors, and all that sort of countrylife events.
Mind you, about the idealistic visions of what’s to be expected, despite the adventurous feelings, and excitement of knowing that this is what you long for, and invest in, that the people in such endeavours bring their emotional luggage, issues, and habitual quirks, moods, and manners of interaction, in working together, all with them. Those aren’t going to change immediately, and that means, that issues will pop up, jalousy, opportunistic behaviour, quarrels about collective initiatives due to different experience, or the lack of it.
As an experienced volunteer in communities, living rural, off grid more or less, with the intention to learn about such a lifestyle, exploring possibilities to join, and enjoy my years of retirement, making sure that a group of people live with me, taking care of my limitations at an old age when the time comes, I’ve learned that all communities, large and small, all in their own way, resemble planet Earths.
And so, although purpose and intention may be clear, this lifestyle takes also agility of mind, heart and body. In physical labour, and in mental and emotional journeys where issues pop up, and common ground established.
I think a little community would be nice. In fact, it may be essential especially with regard to truly becoming old (not 47 haha, so true, not too old). We do not have that. My husband is 57, quite a bit older than I, but very able-bodied for now, thankfully. I speak with him often about doing things with the idea in mind that however we build up our systems, our routines, our way of going about things, we should always keep in mind that one day we will be unable to do for ourselves many of the things we can currently do, so look for ways to make things easier for our future selves. Build and plan with that in mind. Maybe somewhere along the road, family will join us, build with us, etc. I don’t know. But I am open to it.
Thank you, Theresa, great to hear how you talks about this endeavour. I’m for about 18 months now, following a YouTube channel Self Reliance or Shawn James. Same homesteader. Shawn shared his work, his living conditions, and the wilderness, plus offers quite a lot of education on how to… skills. He’s very experienced and now at the age of 50. I myself worked in communities, and assisted with building strawbale homes, working with clay to cover the walls, at the age of 59. I’m now 70, and fit like a salmon on a mountain lake, haha. The best of luck and joyful creative try outs I wish you in the years to come. 🍀🧡
That is amazing! I aim to be more like you, fit like a salmon on a mountain lake, love it! haha. I will check out that youtube channel. Thanks.
Yes, I am 100% in agreement with self sufficient country living! Bravo Theresa and family! 💜
Beautiful read, thank you Theresa!💜💜💜
I for at least the past 15 years have been slowly, but surely working towards my dream life of self sufficient country living, and finally I am right there ready willing and now finally able to walk through that open door into my brand new Beautiful life very soon! I am so very excited!!!
That is truly awesome! I am so excited for you. It’s an amazing journey to be on, and great to have a bunch of us learning the old ways again.
Yes! Thank you Theresa
Congratulations to you empowering women! I hope I am around long enough to follow your journeys!
Thank you Mary-Jane for your inspiring Beautiful words!💜
I can certainly relate to your experience, though from a little older generations perspective. I too love the “homestead” concept. I’ve a small plot of land in a desert/dry climates,…… about 7 inches of rain per year, and although our challenges and outcomes will vary, having a retreat is wonderful, even though it is in an early state of development. My children are of your generation and I’m certainly encouraging them to the same line of thinking. Thanks for sharing!
The homestead is a retreat… a retreat from the crazy world we now live in, for sure. Our land is currently undeveloped, but it’s already a retreat to me – a place I look forward to shaping into our dreams. I grew up in the suburbs and “hated yardwork” with a passion. If I can turn country anyone can, at any age! 🙂 My young adult kids stayed behind, but I do hope to entice them into visiting and seeing the dream come together. I hope to role-model that much for them. Thanks for your thoughtful comment.
Ahhhhhh. Like coming home hey? All power to you. I think most of us these days are craving that return to a more nurturing unhurried earth life. I may have left my run too late, but I’m here with you in spirit and hope to watch your journey grow. I agree with Margarita!
I feel so lucky to be able to put this into action in my life. There are so many others who want but just aren’t quite there yet, or ever – for whatever reasons. I gardened and learned all the skills in that area for many years while living in my suburban home. I just outgrew suburbia. I had no idea I was a country girl at heart. I really love it here in the mountains. It does feel like coming home.
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The independence/be independent so much as possible – is one of the practical, efficient, creative, interesting and also survival theme of today and of course also one of my the entire life here, so – welcome
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“Real people (not bots) would read your wordy post and give you a thoughtful paragraph or two in response. Really! Now we are down to phrases and pictures. Our attention spans have been trained smaller and smaller.”
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Yes – so it is, therefore I just share with others my own direct experiences/creations (as descriptions in word, or in another expression form), this – what I am conscious and zero of secondhand/XYhand/superficial informations of any form; through this I see – who live the lifes here and who just something copy like a robot/bot
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This of course also serves as inspiration/motivation for others, so as not to be afraid to express one self and to describe something direct from own existence/experiences/life/lifes (if anyone lives here at all), because this has *value, energy and power for changes* (and this is in the secondhand informations never included)
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I feel like this is what I came here (to earth) to do, to be an example and be one of the masses leaving cities for rural life. It’s exciting to be part of this type of movement. I just did not know when I dreamt of it, that half the world would be routing for us. So amazing!
Love your story! We are doing the same here in New Zealand 🙂 Inspiring, motivational, healthy! Keep writing your blog – it’s like a breath of fresh air these days on the social media.
Thank you so much for the sweet response. 🙂 I’m so happy to connect!