July 4, 2010

New Home Sweet Home

I have moved! Earlier this spring I was given the opportunity to move into a house that is owned by the church. I will be doing a rent/work exchange as a part of that will be managing a new intentional community.

A sad part of this is that my time at the Ella Baker Community has come to an end and I think it may also mark the end of the community. Everyone has decided to move on. We have replaced the people in the house and I believe they are interested in intentional community, so I hope some of the values will continue. We will have to see.

I have moved into a gorgeous old house that is over 100 years old. I am excited because I have gotten to do a ton of work on it and because I work at the church, I have more control over the house. This means that I can install things like a hanging pot rack and magnetic knife holder in the kitchen and a compost bin in the back. It also means that chickens are more of a possibility.

We have had the house back for about a month, though I just moved in yesterday, and it has been a flurry of activity. We have painted the entire house, redone the floors on the second and third floors, redone some of the kitchen (though not by choice and it'll need more work soon), and installed 4 raised beds in the front yard.

I am already seeing the wonderful possibilities this house can offer. We have met a ton of people all-ready through the front yard gardens. One of my housemates is really excited about community outreach and so we've been brainstorming all kinds of ideas. I see a bright future for this yet unnamed community and I can't wait to see what unfolds.