Can We Live a Seemingly Conventional Life and Successfully Unschool?
Is our unschooling life rich enough? Can we live a seemingly conventional life and successfully unschool? Or do we need to travel the world or spend time seeing our country firsthand? Perhaps we need to live off-grid or live in an unusual place or home? These were questions that I was pondering quite a few years ago.
When we were offered an opportunity to move to a tumbledown cottage on a fish farm, we imagined living an exciting, wild and free life on 100 acres of beautiful Australian bush. So we set off in search of adventure. But we didn’t end up living a dream life. We had to endure drought, poor soil, rats, snakes, the stress of keeping our dog away from the gun of our neighbour. When we were told that our unborn baby had an ‘abnormality incompatible with life’, our dream came to an end. We headed back to town where we could be near the hospital and all the conveniences of life.
Sometimes we don’t have to go looking for rich learning experiences: they can arrive without warning. We learnt so much while struggling to cope with the death of a child. There were practical things: how to organise a funeral, order a headstone and choose the right words to put on it. But, more importantly, we also learnt about love.
It doesn’t matter where we live as long as our homes are full of unconditional love. That’s what our kids need more than anything else.
So, that’s the short version of my story. Maybe you’d like to hear the long one by watching my video.
Here are a few photos that I took on an old point-and-shoot film camera while we were living in the cottage on the fish farm surrounded by acres of bush.
Imogen, Charlotte and Callum
The back of the cottage
The view from the back of the cottage
Felicity, Imogen, Duncan, Callum and Charlotte gathered around the wood stove inside the cottage
These days, we live in a conventional house on an average-sized block in a village 20 minutes from the nearest town. We’re connected to the town water supply, and we buy our food from a supermarket. We often buy it online! And although our life may look rather ordinary, it’s not. It’s packed full of rich learning experiences. Most importantly, our home is a place which we try to fill with unconditional love. It’s where we unschool. It’s perfect for us.