Getting involved in something bigger than ourselves

I found a great article in Utne Blogs entitled, "How to Get Ready for the Global Ecovillage Movement.

I think a lot of us are frustrated because we feel caught up in a society that is working at cross-purposes to Mother Earth, working against human needs, working against our sense of happiness and personal fulfillment.

Have we been too quick to condemn intentional communities as a concept because of the ones that have gone wrong, dominated by narrow religious doctrines or cult-like leaders?

I think that when done right, sharing living space with like-minded people (and sometimes those who are a little different from us) is a very positive thing!

We need social interaction and our present society doesn't always provide that. We discover that we can live better in community. Why struggle to survive when together we can share our resources and have enough to thrive? Do you hip forum people feel like a fish out of water? What about going somewhere where your creativity and sustainability skills are appreciated and cherished?

Hope you enjoy the article and do feel welcome to share your thoughts about it!

 

i visited a new ecovillage this summer . yes , it was dominated by
a cult-like leader . i mentioned to him that such a leadership strategy
could well be useful in the beginning and then i advised he have a plan
for exiting that role , to be just one of the brothers . he replied that he
would not have a such plan yet he would exit the role and would rely on
his future self-knowing for determining when to do it . i assured him he
would never know . then i had to leave . down at the road i met a bird , a
great blue heron , who comforted my feeling of homelessness with a word .

it spoke of making a nest , which birds are very wise about .

 

Tikoo, there is nothing about the concept of community that requires that it be ruled by one person or even a group of leaders. Take all the time you need to find a place where people are free and equals.
I am glad you did not waste much time with that community this summer. It is so unnecessary to treat our fellow humans that way!

 

in love , my real concern in going in there was how to treat them . it
came to mean i would not do everything i was told to do and then do
everything to respect the spirit of what was being asked .

and so then
i was treated as an equal even tho i was the something bigger than themself .

 

So tikoo, what now? If you don't want to go where you have been, do you want to stay where you are or go somewhere else?

Is community living still something you would consider?
(but a different sort of place we would hope).

 

thanks for the interest . for the next month or so i'm here
at the family farm helping with big corn harvest . funny tho ,
my mind lately is in hallucination mode ... relatedly i am open
to revelation . i think to write a little book ...

the last spot i had real contentment was a camp away down
a deer trail and near a springhead . if'n it'd been a community
there that'd been ok . i like to play music with people .