I have always wanted to live in a small town.
I thought that would be the best thing in the world.
But I realize now, I was looking for something more.
Community. I wanted a community.
And now, what I am striving for in my life is to build a community.
I want a place of belonging
I want a place of kindness
I want a place of togetherness but also aloneness
I kinda want to build my own small town.
As a believer in the Universal Energy all around us, I generally subscribe to not getting too specific with what I want and just putting those general things out into the world.
But this dream is very specific.
I want to build a community of recycled shipping container homes. I want it to be eclectic with homes of all different designs. I want them to be LEED certified. I want it to use renewable energy. I want a community garden. I want community composting. I want a building used for community space so people can gather when they want to. There is a circular feel to it, everyone is included. I want to have my own container house with solar on the roof and a small yard for my dog. I want a sanctuary for people who feel that they just don’t fit in the world. A place where neighbors become family.
I know that there is a greater good in that dream. But, it is selfish for me too.
I am not a great gardener, I want to have help and guidance.
I am going to grow old without any children of my own, I want family around me.
I want to walk through a neighborhood and know my neighbors. Say hi when I pass their houses. Have a chat.
So, I want to build a world for myself. I know it won’t be perfect.
I also don’t have any idea how I can accomplish it. But I believe it can be done. I have seen similar types of neighborhoods. So, it is not an entirely new thing in the world, just a very new thing for me. I know nothing about development or city planning or even building a house. So, I am learning every day. I have seen what great homes can be made of shipping containers. I am looking into what it might take to change city codes to allow them to be built. I am moving slowly, but I am moving.
If you have some ideas for me to move my dream forward, I will take them. If you want to share your dreams here, I would love to hear them.
Until then, I am over here dreaming big and longing for a community.