Dreaming A Community Sanctuary
I have this corner of my land that I think of as my Sanctuary. It’s about 3/4 an acre, mostly wooded with some open meadow-type space. There’s a composting potty, a big tent to get out of the rain, a fire circle, camp chairs and benches, 3 apples trees, nature books, and hammocks. It’s fenced in and home to 3 goats and 5 chickens. I like to hang out here gazing at the trees, playing with the bugs, identifying the birds, and shooing the goats away from trying to nibble my clothes. I’ve imagined this space as a crossroads where wild children and lazy grownups and unhindered nature can live side by side. I never mow it. I never poison it.
I’ve created what’s called an “adventure playground” here named Wild Play Woods – a mess of construction materials, tools, and art supplies that children can freely play and create with. I’ve welcomed in many adventurous kids whose parents want a place for them that isn’t constrained by tidy ideas about what children’s play looks like. It’s more fun the more kids there are. But it’s proved tricky to find days and times when people will consistently come. The vibe just isn’t right when only one child shows up, not knowing whether they’ll have any friends to play with or not.
I’ve stopped hosting play days for the last few weeks to think about this dilemma. During that time, I’ve tried to enjoy the space on my own, but it’s lacking something.
For one thing, I need help with maintenance. There’s poison ivy to kill and things to set back up when the goats knock them over. There’s feeding and watering and fencing the animals. The play materials need sorting and refilling. It’s not THAT much to do, and none of it is ever too urgent. I could keep up with it easily if only I spent more time out here. Which I’d LOVE to do, except for that one, same obstacle: I want people to be here with me!!
Chores aside, I’m simply craving people. I want company! I want community! But in a lot of ways, I’m tired of chasing people out in the world. I just want one place where I can go and be with my people, and I’d love for it to be right here in this Sanctuary I’ve been building. I want to lay around doing nothing with other nature-minded people – chilling in our hammocks, reading books, napping, daydreaming. I want kids roaming around in wild packs. I want to experiment with gardening and composting and permaculture WITH other people, WITHOUT expectations about outcomes. I want to camp out here, cooking, and telling stories around the fire. I want to have big culture conversations about political activism and how to survive climate chaos. I want to chit chat about our relationships, our parenting, our mental health. I want to practice Nonviolent Communication (NVC) together. I want to make art and music together. I want to celebrate the seasons with big community events/rituals/parties/concerts.
I guess I’m describing an outdoor community center of sorts? One that isn’t run by a business and isn’t fancy or pretty on purpose. You want eggs from the chickens? You can have them. You want to camp overnight? There’s no fee. It’s messy, like me. It’s inconvenient weeds. It’s ugly chairs faded by the sun. It’s cheap stuff and old stuff and stuff cobbled together from other stuff. It will never go viral on Pinterest. Free and messy – that’s the people I want to make community with!!
How do I talk people into coming over and doing this with me? Does anyone else NEED a space like this? Do YOU? Do your kids? Do you know others who do? Are you getting this need met elsewhere? Would you drive over here to do this with me? When? How often? What parts appeal to you? How can I make this happen REGULARLY? Because I want it more often than once a month! I want people to feel free to come over “all the time”, a place to treat like their own outdoor home. A space where we make a habit and a lifestyle of hanging out together – sometimes (often!) to do nothing, sometimes to work, sometimes to play, sometimes to learn something, and sometimes to party.
What do you think? Thanks for reading. I invite you to share your thoughts, and I invite you to come on over!
This is my wish tossed out into the universe today. What’s yours?
