Raising kids off grid... a beautiful hardship that peaks your awareness.
Raising a child is hard , raising three alone is tough, doing it in a remote area with no utilities was a special experience that needed super planning . Always thinking of the next resource need and planning ahead for it . No switching on the heating , instead a pre planned wood collecting walk, dry storage in a barn and finally bringing it in to the caravan. No chains to flush away loo waste out of sight. Instead a very hands on experience of daily emptying and layering then planting. No running water in winter as the pipe off the moor top froze , instead a short walk to the nearest trough to break the ice. No flicking on the light switch for night time ‘loo trips’. Instead a home made candle lit and carried even by the youngest , Willy winky style to the loo.
Despite all this I still miss the connection to each other and the elements that were such a big part of the daily parenting off grid experience .
As the boy in the picture is now 17 and 6’3; just got his independence via motorbike, I wonder if any of this will remain as he bikes to college this morning! Certainly the longing to go back to such super planned simplicity is deep for me.
If anyone wants a chat about going it alone and off grid especially with small kids , I’m always here. It’s hard; but a beautiful hardship that peaks your instincts and heightens your awareness … if that makes sense .
Love for the journey (and my son out on his new motorbike!)