It's a Movement. Join us!
It’s that time of year again. You may be already sick of the holiday music that is at every grocery store and doctor’s office. Bundling up against the cold is already driving you indoor, and crazy. And, of course, there is that hunt for the perfect gift to give someone who already has everything.
Last year I gave some ideas for holiday gifts so I thought I would share a few more this year. Here are some ideas for gifts to give and what to ask for if someone needs to know.
Featured Resource
Don’t forget to check out our Resources section of the Women for Living in Community website where you can find useful information about:
We also feature a resource, spotlighting a book, article, or person instrumental to the Women Living in Community network. Check out the most current feature, the book, With a Little From Our Friends by Beth Baker.
Recently a reader on the Facebook page asked:
“I never see anyone on this page that is actually looking for a roommate or a house to live in community with other people, why is that? I live in the Triad on North Carolina which is in the center of the state, I would love to find other women who want to live in community, if you are out there please contact me.”
While we would love for our page to facilitate meetings it may not be the best tool for the job. However, there are many other ways to find like-minded people in your area with whom to build community. I thought I might provide some ideas and tools that can work for you.
I have written a couple of blog posts about this very subject. You can see them here:
So let’s take recap and take a look at some of the best online methods in a little more detail.
Last month I shared the story of my injury and was looking forward to recovery. I do want to let you all know that I have been doing very well since I had surgery to repair the damage in my neck and have been slowly getting back to normal.
When I wrote about my experience and the importance of my shared household and community in my initial emergency as well as my recovery I purposefully left out part of the story. This one involved a more widespread community and how the internet and social media played a part in the connections.
When I first felt the debilitating pain in my neck, my original Facebook posting got the attention of my cousin who just happens to be a neurosurgeon. One phone call later I felt confident with a second opinion that helped inform me about my options going forward. I also received dozens of well wishes from others as well as input from people who had similar experiences in their own lives. It was helpful to be in contact just to let my far-flung friends and family know that I wasn’t ignoring them but rather trying to stay away from the computer too much and let the healing begin.
Since that time, and throughout the surgery, I was able use an online tool called Caring Bridge which allowed everyone to stay in touch, keep themselves informed, and send messages of support that I could see when I was finally back to a computer screen. It was both practical and heartwarming. Caring Bridge is a non-profit organization.
I have experienced so much support over the last several months that it is hard to write about how much it touched me. There were many messages, emails, visits, offers to help, dinners made, and deliveries of delicious edibles. Some friends even offered to take me to the doctor to help in my recovery. There are so many more blessings that I can’t even list.
Have you evaluated what you have in your support network? Support takes a different shape with each person in your life. You may have friends and family in another state who can’t be with you to help but want to support you in other ways. Most of my family is on the west coast but through the power of the internet I was able to stay connected and I knew they were thinking of me and lending their support in my recovery.
Of course, the internet doesn’t just have to play a role in your life when you’ve suffered a major setback. It can be a great tool for finding your own community and making change happen in your life. Tools like Facebook and Meet Up can help connect you to likeminded people to form a community and become each other’s support network through every day challenges and major disasters.
What are you waiting for?
Learn more about building community through Marianne’s workbook Your Quest for Home and on the website. Ask a question and join the discussion on Facebook.
Once again, I’ve asked my friend and professional writer Laura M. LaVoie to provide some insight on the tiny house community and how it may relate to graceful aging, living in community, and other issues boomers face today. Laura has read and reviewed the book The Big Tiny by Dee Williams, a woman living in Olympia Washington in a house smaller than 100 square feet.
Beyond almost anything else, I am grateful to be a part of the tiny house community so I can meet wonderful souls like Dee Williams. She is funny, bubbly, and kind. Like most of the tiny house community, we are all spread across the country so most of our interaction takes place on social media. However, in April of 2014 a couple dozen bloggers converged on the first annual Tiny House Conference in Charlotte NC. Dee was the key note speaker. This was right before her book, The Big Tiny, hit bookstore shelves so I really didn’t know much about her story beyond the basics that she was willing to share online.
I often talk about the financial aspects of community living options as we age. It is really great to be able to pool money and resources and live in shared house or community. Other subjects that frequently come up with this topic are companionship and caregiving. However, there are a few more hidden benefits we can take away from sharing a home or an intentional community with other like-minded adults as we age. Community living can make us healthier. Here is a look at some of the ways this works.
Image by Anne Fitten Glenn via Flickr
Recently, my city of Asheville was listed in a Yahoo Finance article about the 10 cities where ordinary people can no longer afford homes. There are major changes in the real estate market, especially considering that just a few short years ago individual home owners weren’t able to sell their homes without taking a loss or needing to consider a short sale. It just goes to show how quickly things change.
While the article talks about the increasing mortgage rates across the United States it doesn’t seem to indicate the other factors that make these particular cities less affordable. Could it be pay inequality or the higher cost of living? In any case, it may be time to reconsider the way American’s buy homes in the first place.
I have a radical idea for individuals who want to buy homes in these areas: Community Living.
I was honored to be asked to speak at the Positive Aging Conference for the third time in its 7 year run so far. I love the very concept behind the event: the new wrinkle, if you will, that aging is a positive thing.
345 people were in attendance at the 3 day event in February. It was an amazing turnout. There were quite a few equally amazing discussions and workshops offered. A few titles that show the breadth of the presentations:
The Grand Nudge
One of the things I hear most from people curious about living in community is the phrase, “Oh, I could never do that…” This is usually followed by a laundry list of “reasons” why changing their lives could never work out. Usually these objections don’t reflect flaws in the community living model but rather insecurities from people not sure where to start or afraid to take the first step.
I am here to tell you: it isn’t going to be easy, but it is going to be worth it!
My new guidebook, Your Quest for Home, provides a number of different exercises that you can do to address the burning questions that might be keeping you from making this major change in your life. Here is an excerpt to get you started.
I encourage you to click below to read more from Your Quest for Home.
No woman is an island and rather than let you think I have come up with all of these great ideas by myself I wanted to share some of the people who influenced and inspired me along the way. This list is of my favorite people and why you might want to add them to your list as well.
Joan Medlicott
The author of the Ladies of Covington Series has been a great inspiration to me in my journey. Truly ahead of her time, Joan’s books are filled with strong, older female characters. I’ve had the pleasure getting to know Joan over the years with our first introduction in 2005. She was a contributor to our conference in 2007. I frequently loan her books out to other women who want to know more about shared housing. It is hard to know what the future holds for Joan since she is dealing with an illness now. I am glad to share her legacy with other women.
Click below to read more about my favorite people.
