We all live such different lives and the way we spend our time is very valuable to us all. We have made choices which have led us to where we are today, personal choices that have brought us to this exact point in our lives.
Where are you now?
What has your journey been like?
Is this where you envisaged you would be?
I have always known from a young age that I wanted to get away from my home, to escape, to roam. That urge grew and grew in me and turned into a passion for travelling. With that came the opportunity to really open my eyes to the world around me, instead of just looking at a book (yeah no internet when I was growing up) and imaging and reading about what was happening in different countries, I would get to go there and experience first hand what our beautiful world was like.
And I am happy to say that I did just that and it is something that I continue to do.
With my love for the natural world, I was blown away by the beauty I saw in each country I visited. I remember the first Jungle I visited, It was Palanque In Mexico, I got a bus from the town early morning to go see the Maya ruins. When I got there it was still early morning and there was a mist in the jungle, walking through that forest to get to the ruins I suddenly heard a chorus of Howler Monkeys. Then I came apon a small Clearing and a sight that took my breathe away, I had to sit down to take it all in. I was so overwhelmed by the sheer beauty of the jungle and the sound and sight of the monkeys. This to me was what life was about, moments just like this.
But with the wonder came the realization that the life that we as humans have created is not quite what it seems. That in order to keep the world progressing in the way that our forefathers started, we had to abandon our dreams and conform in order to keep the wheels of the industrial world well oiled and turning. That what we were being forced fed are some one else's ideals and dreams.
At the centre of the world for humans is the cities, is the areas where most production takes place and with it the most deception. Here is where there is a hub of activity, of creativity, but here is also where so many are isolated and alone. It is a place of extremes, on the one hand captivating in what it has to offer, but on the other side serving up poverty and violence.
People feel a pull to this place, because it has so much, it is bursting with life and creative arts, it is the pulsating heart for some. But not for me, I have lived in the city, I have experienced what it has to offer and I felt like it sucked me in and took a part of me with it. The only outlet I found was in partying and trying to create that feeling I first experienced in that jungle in Mexico. But I was chasing a sythentic version that just doesnot compare to the real thing.
For me the natural world has it all, so to the edges I went, to the place I belonged. I do not feel at home in a city, it could not give me what I wanted. I want to wake each day and walk barefoot on the earth, to recharge my body and reconnect. To me the edge is somewhere that is home for those who do not wish to conform, who do not fit into this ideal that we have been told is ours. Yes at times it can be hard living at the edge, for one you have to do a lot more physical work in order to live. There are no easy convienences in store. You want heat, you chop your wood, you want fresh food, you forage or grow your own.
But that is exactly the way I like it. I like washing myself in rivers and streams, I like that I have to handwash my clothes at times. It really makes me appreciate water. I do not take it for granted, nobody should. Where I am now I have a tap, before that I collected and carried water ever time I wanted to wash. I am grateful for the tap, but I do miss the mission in getting and sourcing water. I really do find my joy in the simple things.
To me the edge of Nature is diverse and full of life, look at banks of rivers and sides of forests, this is somewhere where we get to see a lot of diversity. I like the idea of living on the edge of Society, it is where I belong. I do not wish to be part of something I do not agree with. I will visit sometimes, dip my feet in, maybe paddle around for a little bit, but I wil always return to the Edge.
What About You, do you live on the Edge?
Big Big Thank You To @byn for designing my logo.
very inspiring post..it hasn't escaped my attention that people who live the simplest of lives seem to be the happiest.. that applies to third world and the developed world.. i know people who live in cities and manage to be very happy.. but they are always living on the edge...
i think those who learned to trust and not live in fear or being without are the most happy. that is a theme I am really struggling with as I have also lived on the edge.. and have generally always landed on my feet.. but sometimes life tests us to our limits.. to trust, stay open, and be in the moment.. because usually in the moment we are just fine.. it often the fear of what may be, or what we missed out on that can cause us so much unhappiness.
thank you for being an inspiration, because you truly walk your talk.. and that alone is very special and quite rare!
<3
thank you so much @eco-alex for your beautiful words they really mean a lot to me.
It really is all about living in the moment and that can be hard to do when life is trying hard test your capabilities. I think when we embrace what we have and really start to enjoy the many simple pleasures
that are all around us, we can break away from those things that have hold over us,
life for sure is not meant to be easy, but being able to appreciate the food we eat, the ground we walk on and this amazing home we have does put things into perspective xxx
This is great stuff. The jungle sounds wonderful.
I had my own "jungle" experience when I stayed in the Appalachian mountains for a week. It was for a biology course, and we ended up putting on sound amplification devices so we could hear the hunting and communication calls of the bats at night. Hearing their voices (normally beyond our range of perception) in the pitch black night in the mountains gave me a sense of wonder I just can't really explain.It gave me the chills. I looked at the girl next to me and our eyes both got wide. "This is so fuckin' cool" were, I believe, her profound words. :) It was true, though. It was like I was hearing life itself, and on a whole 'nother planet.
thank you Graham, I would love to know what those bats sounded like, thank you for sharing your story with me x
If only we knew this BEFORE the synthetic city days. Our tendency to dualisms... ugh... city to know we prefer the wild nature, synthetic to know we prefer natural highs... sukkha dukkha ... such is life! 😘
yes indeed @riverflows, all we need is the true outdoors xx
I completely agree with you when you say "I like the idea of living on the edge of Society, it is where I belong. I do not wish to be part of something I do not agree with."
Something that I am so grateful for living where I do. Its crazy how modern society especially in the western world, has become so stagnated. I love the fact that just like nature, we too are rewilding ourselves and finding our roots as a species. Thank you for sharing this beautiful and thought provoking post. :-)
thank you @holisticmom yes it is time to rewild ourselves like you have said, it is so important to reconnect with our roots and find our way from there xx
I love this.
If you're not living on the edge, you're taking up too much space ;o)
I think there are many ways to live on the edge. For example, I believe that we are on the cutting edge with what we are doing.
thank you Sam and yes we are on the cutting edge xx
I resonate alot with this desciption! I grew up in a city. I never felt like i belonged in my neighbourhood, but for some reason i never thought that it was the city. But i got exactly the same realization by travelling! After experiencing the jungle, the mountains, the deserts and forests, i know that i belong where the trees grow and the river flows! I dont think i could ever live in a city again.
Mmm. I love hearing the howlers. They're so raw. I feel like I have gone too far over the edge right now. I need to move a little back toward center. We're trying to gather the $s for a move to a place where there are more kids for the kids to play with and also awesome stuff like a tea house, coffee shop, ice cream shop, etc. It's still a small village, but it looks like way civilization from here. This place is so beautiful, but I'm so isolated, and so are the kids. I really need more human interaction. And I do love my washing machine, but I've learned to live without a lot of other things over the last couple years and totally much happier for it. The 2 months of handwashing was for sure enough for me for this lifetime, especially cause I still had one in diapers. Totally common place here for people to handwash. I just can't go back on that one.