communal musings

I have had a long chat today with a playgroup friend about life in Fiji and about the community we live in and how much we create this or give in.

For many years I was longing for a certain kind of friendship or kinship derived from our old alternative lifestyles, communal living, biodynamic food, conscious living choices and what not. I have always been intrigued by those folks who choose to live together away from commercial influence (and much to the contrary to what our modern society dictates us is good for us). To some extent I blame this on my rather simple upbringing in East Germany.

Believe me, expats, Fiji is a paradise compared to what we were living in economically. However my childhood Germany was a paradise in terms of community. We used to know everyone, all helped to get the goods that were so hard to get hold of, families used to gather and build each others houses and despite of all the mistrust of who is a spy for the government, for us children this was a world full of goodness and support.

After 8 years in Suva I have had contact with diverse kind of folks. Some from home with whom you do not have to explain yourself. Some real locals from the village who taught me perspective and humbleness. Some urban locals who gave me a very interesting insight into the business world. Some expats with whom I was not exactly sharing the same lifestyle, but who also had teething babies, school kids worries and were refreshingly normal and whom I would have never met in another place. Some locals with some connection overseas who are the doers of this country, because if they won’t do it then nobody will.

I am pondering this question. What does take to get a community to feel like a community? There are areas where we feel relieved from economical pressure and may show our real selves in a school board, charity board, church community.

You wish for something to be part of your life and instead of leaving, you just create it. It’s the story of our kindergarten and many other endeavours as schools, markets, artistic places, cafes, all of which are not profit-oriented, but lifestyle choices.

Be aware what you wish for, what’s profoundly and practically important in your life.

And here’s what I wish for:

I want folks around me who want to spend time with their children instead of leaving them with nannies and day care all day long. I want folks who love healthy food for body and soul. I want artists and craftspeople around me. I want friends who listen to my worries and offer me a hug instead of solutions. I want buddies to shovel a sandpit in the garden and have a beer afterwards. I want neighbors whom I can talk to, share food with, share worries with. I want life to slow down, so I can breathe in every moment of it.

Now I am glad to be able to say that I have most of these. I have wonderful next-door neighbors, I have Cath to have a beer with, I have Pamela to get a hug, I have Lindy and Pamela for crafts and soul food, I have Lara and Greg to have these intellectual and profound discussions with and I have l0ads of people to share good food. And I have the entire playgroup to share the life with children with.

Here’s what we talk about at playgroup: sleep patterns, immunisations, nappy free, allergens, gluten, healthy food suppliers, baking bread, the will of the child, contact with neighbors, school community, and intellectual deprivation. Yes intellectual deprivation…

I feel very blessed to have met all of you! And I feel more blessed to be with your children, listen to their questions, paint with them, have them on my lap, divert their frustration and get them to enjoy creative play! But that’s a topic for another post!

Love and Sunshine to you all!

Anja