I absolutely love this! As someone perpetually lost in the trap of thinking my life should be something different than what it is (mostly due to the inundation of options presented to us via social media). I often forget that life can look different than the photos presented to us on a screen and yet still reap the same result. Thank you for sharing this wisdom! 🕊️
Oh gosh this was so good to read. We recently did the opposite to what you describe: we went from the convenience of a busy city to an old house in rural Maine - no chickens yet, but def a lot of maintenance, gardening, wood stacking, and driving long distances. And yeah - I’d love our life to be slow but it’s just not because there’s so. much. to. do. I love it here but the reality is so far from the aesthetic.
Ah thanks for reading Fran 🙏 Oooh Rural Maine must be gorgeous! I think it's all about the season of life you find yourself in isn't it? We were so happy, for so many years in our cottage, onsite at our forest school....such treasured memories! But for the season of life we find ourselves in, this version of slow is just what we need! Who knows what the next season will hold.
This is an important thing to say out loud, thank you. I live - to some degree - *that* life: we home educate, farm, and make much of our own food. We are actively working on making this lifestyle more possible for us by learning helpful new skills and such. So, from a lived perspective like the author’s, I want to add that the nuclear family model is largely the reason that the pace of “homesteading” life is as it is. We may love all the beauty and connection to land - many, many people do - but trying to do the work within the settler colonial model of family is not truly sustainable (if you’re going to keep your mental and physical health). I think it’s good to name that painting this kind of life as idyllic is the project of colonialism and all the things that it entails, including ableism, white supremacy, classism (capitalism) and patriarchy. All of these things are antithetical to “slow living”. When we attempt to be “self-sufficient” we miss context of this lifestyle. It needs to be done in and for community, not just a single nuclear family.
Having left a rural life last year to move closer to our kids and into a 55+ community…it’s been an adjustment…I can relate to this. I look fondly back on our chicken (and ducks and rabbits and sheep and goat and dogs and cats) life while raising our kids. But I grew up in suburbia where I hopped on my bike and rode around the neighborhood and downtown and that life was great, too. Now we live in a combination of both. Our community is on the outskirts of town with a rural feel. I look out back into the woods and bought a middle townhouse for more privacy. And yet, I step out my front door into community, where we can walk to friends’ houses. My body could no longer handle the work required of our land. It is an adjustment coming to communal living, but I think we made the right move. We still have a dog so can’t just pick up and go, but it’s given us back time.
This was such a refreshing read! Social media has painted a picture that rural living with chickens and only home cooked food is the only way to ‘do’ slow living. We also live in a cookie-cutter house in the suburbs and find many joys of slow living right here (with the occasional sourdough bread, too!).
Absolutely! That's my feelings too. I love all those things but I think it's important that we each have the power to create a "slow life" let is as individual as we are. There is no one right way like you say! 🙌
This article makes total sense to me. My parents have a small farm and I see the many complex challenges they deal with. We live in an apartment in a city. We don't have a car. It's actually quite lovely. We have neighbor kids in the building for my children to play with. Family lives down the street and we spend a lot of time with them. We walk a ton. It's physically impossible to accumulate too much stuff due to space constraints. Simplicity can take many forms!
I love this so much! I really love our home in suburbia but the noise about slow living on big plots of land make you think that's the only way to slow things down...when maybe it can look like having a picnic by your fence line because your neighbors have a beautiful tree that drapes into your yard and make some nice shade.
I really enjoyed this read - thank you. I wrote about something similar (through a slightly different lens of work and worth) and I love seeing that more and more people are shedding the idea of what “slow living” (or let’s be real… any sort of life) needs to look like. It gives me hope that maybe we’re all starting to pay a bit more attention. Maybe we’re checking in more with ourselves and our own values, dreams, realities, etc…. which seems like it could be a good thing. 🙂
Yes having lived a country life - both laying and meat chickens, lambs, a moderate veg garden, flowers- while also raising 2 kids and working a full time nonprofit sustainability job, I have to say it was exhausting. Then I lived a number of years in a small house in a walkable neighborhood in a sociable midsized city, and that downsized nest gave me so.mich of the simplicity I'd been hoping for.
I loved reading this and how you found your path to slow living! I too experienced a shift, but decided not to leave our home (although considered it). I used to say it was the busiest slow living I ever experienced. I worked my ass off and ignored my chronic illness in the sake of healing. My body said no more and I landed in the hospital. It all came crashing down and I lost my ability to walk for some time and still to live unassisted. I went from running a busy farm with over 100 poultry, rabbits, pigs, 3000sqft garden and kids in tow while teaching Sourdough classes (which I published a book about)… to barely surviving. My body couldn’t keep up for various health reasons and today we manage 6 chickens, 6 ducks, 1 goose, 6 raised beds and I’m pretty sure my sourdough starter is dead but my kids aren’t and I am not. The beautiful thing is we have permission to shift and reinvent our lives as many times as we want to suit our needs. Thank you for sharing this piece and the truth about the not so slow living picture (it can be).
Wow, that's such a huge amount of work Allysia, it sounds like a very difficult time. I'm glad to hear you've found your way to a more sustainable and healthful path for you and your family!
Yeah, I was pretty delusional thinking I could handle that undertaking solo. Lessons learned! I’m so grateful to be here today making steps towards embracing slow living while nourishing myself and our family without killing myself. 💚
This is a really refreshing angle Elizabeth. I started writing something last week with a similar ‘edge’ to it about how we idealise ‘wildness’ as if some kind of hierarchy of what constitutes ‘nature.’ exists. I think you’ll like it, will send it to you whenever it’s finished (could be months! ;) ) Jodi x
I've often found myself sucked down the perfect rural idyll rabbit hole on Instagram so this was a timely read for me. I like to 'dabble' with the whole 'good life' self-sufficiency thing, but you're right, it takes a lot of time and effort! I think I could do it and enjoy it if I didn't have a job. I don't honestly see how anyone holds a job and lives a life like that!
Same! I love being in the garden, growing things, creating things in the kitchen too! If that's all I had to do it was be 👌 but for now, I'll dabble and prioritize ease.
I absolutely love this! As someone perpetually lost in the trap of thinking my life should be something different than what it is (mostly due to the inundation of options presented to us via social media). I often forget that life can look different than the photos presented to us on a screen and yet still reap the same result. Thank you for sharing this wisdom! 🕊️
Thanks Claire! I totally agree, we can choose our own version of slow, simple, spacious living. And it changes as our lives elvole 🙌
Oh gosh this was so good to read. We recently did the opposite to what you describe: we went from the convenience of a busy city to an old house in rural Maine - no chickens yet, but def a lot of maintenance, gardening, wood stacking, and driving long distances. And yeah - I’d love our life to be slow but it’s just not because there’s so. much. to. do. I love it here but the reality is so far from the aesthetic.
Ah thanks for reading Fran 🙏 Oooh Rural Maine must be gorgeous! I think it's all about the season of life you find yourself in isn't it? We were so happy, for so many years in our cottage, onsite at our forest school....such treasured memories! But for the season of life we find ourselves in, this version of slow is just what we need! Who knows what the next season will hold.
that's the beauty of it! no one thing is ever ideal, or permanent!
Yes, exactly!
This is an important thing to say out loud, thank you. I live - to some degree - *that* life: we home educate, farm, and make much of our own food. We are actively working on making this lifestyle more possible for us by learning helpful new skills and such. So, from a lived perspective like the author’s, I want to add that the nuclear family model is largely the reason that the pace of “homesteading” life is as it is. We may love all the beauty and connection to land - many, many people do - but trying to do the work within the settler colonial model of family is not truly sustainable (if you’re going to keep your mental and physical health). I think it’s good to name that painting this kind of life as idyllic is the project of colonialism and all the things that it entails, including ableism, white supremacy, classism (capitalism) and patriarchy. All of these things are antithetical to “slow living”. When we attempt to be “self-sufficient” we miss context of this lifestyle. It needs to be done in and for community, not just a single nuclear family.
Thank you for adding this important perspective to the conversation!
Having left a rural life last year to move closer to our kids and into a 55+ community…it’s been an adjustment…I can relate to this. I look fondly back on our chicken (and ducks and rabbits and sheep and goat and dogs and cats) life while raising our kids. But I grew up in suburbia where I hopped on my bike and rode around the neighborhood and downtown and that life was great, too. Now we live in a combination of both. Our community is on the outskirts of town with a rural feel. I look out back into the woods and bought a middle townhouse for more privacy. And yet, I step out my front door into community, where we can walk to friends’ houses. My body could no longer handle the work required of our land. It is an adjustment coming to communal living, but I think we made the right move. We still have a dog so can’t just pick up and go, but it’s given us back time.
Thank you for reading and sharing your experience Chris. I like the sound of your balance.
This was such a refreshing read! Social media has painted a picture that rural living with chickens and only home cooked food is the only way to ‘do’ slow living. We also live in a cookie-cutter house in the suburbs and find many joys of slow living right here (with the occasional sourdough bread, too!).
Absolutely! That's my feelings too. I love all those things but I think it's important that we each have the power to create a "slow life" let is as individual as we are. There is no one right way like you say! 🙌
This article makes total sense to me. My parents have a small farm and I see the many complex challenges they deal with. We live in an apartment in a city. We don't have a car. It's actually quite lovely. We have neighbor kids in the building for my children to play with. Family lives down the street and we spend a lot of time with them. We walk a ton. It's physically impossible to accumulate too much stuff due to space constraints. Simplicity can take many forms!
The whole time I was reading your post, I was nodding and saying.. “Wow, Yes!”
This spoke to me on so many levels, thank you! 🙏
Thank you so much for reading 🙏
I love this so much! I really love our home in suburbia but the noise about slow living on big plots of land make you think that's the only way to slow things down...when maybe it can look like having a picnic by your fence line because your neighbors have a beautiful tree that drapes into your yard and make some nice shade.
Beautiful! I think it can and should be anything that brings simplicity to your days ❤️
I really enjoyed this read - thank you. I wrote about something similar (through a slightly different lens of work and worth) and I love seeing that more and more people are shedding the idea of what “slow living” (or let’s be real… any sort of life) needs to look like. It gives me hope that maybe we’re all starting to pay a bit more attention. Maybe we’re checking in more with ourselves and our own values, dreams, realities, etc…. which seems like it could be a good thing. 🙂
Oh I love that Rebecca, thank you for reading. I look forward to reading your thoughts on this too 🙏
Yes having lived a country life - both laying and meat chickens, lambs, a moderate veg garden, flowers- while also raising 2 kids and working a full time nonprofit sustainability job, I have to say it was exhausting. Then I lived a number of years in a small house in a walkable neighborhood in a sociable midsized city, and that downsized nest gave me so.mich of the simplicity I'd been hoping for.
What a great example Sarah, thanks for sharing! I'm glad you found the simplicity you were looking for too!
I loved reading this and how you found your path to slow living! I too experienced a shift, but decided not to leave our home (although considered it). I used to say it was the busiest slow living I ever experienced. I worked my ass off and ignored my chronic illness in the sake of healing. My body said no more and I landed in the hospital. It all came crashing down and I lost my ability to walk for some time and still to live unassisted. I went from running a busy farm with over 100 poultry, rabbits, pigs, 3000sqft garden and kids in tow while teaching Sourdough classes (which I published a book about)… to barely surviving. My body couldn’t keep up for various health reasons and today we manage 6 chickens, 6 ducks, 1 goose, 6 raised beds and I’m pretty sure my sourdough starter is dead but my kids aren’t and I am not. The beautiful thing is we have permission to shift and reinvent our lives as many times as we want to suit our needs. Thank you for sharing this piece and the truth about the not so slow living picture (it can be).
Wow, that's such a huge amount of work Allysia, it sounds like a very difficult time. I'm glad to hear you've found your way to a more sustainable and healthful path for you and your family!
Yeah, I was pretty delusional thinking I could handle that undertaking solo. Lessons learned! I’m so grateful to be here today making steps towards embracing slow living while nourishing myself and our family without killing myself. 💚
This is a really refreshing angle Elizabeth. I started writing something last week with a similar ‘edge’ to it about how we idealise ‘wildness’ as if some kind of hierarchy of what constitutes ‘nature.’ exists. I think you’ll like it, will send it to you whenever it’s finished (could be months! ;) ) Jodi x
Thanks Jodi....and yes please! Would love to read your thoughts too 🙏
What a fab read, thanks so much. 🥰 As someone always looking for even just a slower hour, you’ve asked some great questions.
(It also makes me feel better about the fact that I have yet to become a sourdough baker and am mainly just a sourdough-buyer-and-eater. 💙 )
Ah, thank you Anna...I'm also a sourdough-buyer-and-eater 🙌
I've often found myself sucked down the perfect rural idyll rabbit hole on Instagram so this was a timely read for me. I like to 'dabble' with the whole 'good life' self-sufficiency thing, but you're right, it takes a lot of time and effort! I think I could do it and enjoy it if I didn't have a job. I don't honestly see how anyone holds a job and lives a life like that!
Same! I love being in the garden, growing things, creating things in the kitchen too! If that's all I had to do it was be 👌 but for now, I'll dabble and prioritize ease.
This is gorgeously honest Liz! (And a refreshing antidote to the carefully curated feeds that so many of us compare ourselves to)
Thank you Lauren!
A sentiment, not often said out loud, said beautifully.
Thank you Diana 🙏