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| My first Operating Manual, January 2023 |
There is a song by Nat King Cole that goes:
"I was walking along, minding my business
When out of an orange-colored sky
Flash, bam, alakazam
Wonderful, you came by."
My well-worded (and memorized) Worthy Goal* read: "I will join or create a community that is joyful and sustainable – good for the people and good for the planet". Later, I made it into a meme so that I could visualize the feeling. It was published on The Conspiracy* site on January 13, 2023.
I'm pleased to announce that last month I joined an emerging community in Spain that is joyful, affordable and sustainable and good for the people and the planet. I am thrilled and ecstatic. I'm its 115th member, and if you'd like to hear the story, please keep reading below.
*The Conspiracy, Worthy Goal, and Operating Manual are terms used within a group of people who have read a book by Michael Bungay Stanier, “How to Begin,” - “how to make real progress on things that matter.” More info HERE
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| Flash, Bam, Alakazam |
Three Years Ago
In January 2023, I joined the Conspiracy with one project in mind: to join or create a community that is joyful and sustainable – good for the people and good for the planet. It has been a recurring hope and dream.
From then on, I took many steps, some of which seemed to be all over the place and going in tangents. During my first two chapters, I drafted a manifesto and created a keynote presentation to share with my family and friends what I was thinking. Essentially, I wrote down everything that I'd like for my ideal situation.
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| My amazing siblings, 2017 |
I presented it to my family, who thought it was fantastic —and also utopian—definitely a beautiful fantasy. "But not for me," they'd say.
One would not find rural life the right fit; others felt we were too old for this, while another couldn't think that far into the future. All shared different personal variations. In "Shark Tank" parlance, all of them called: I'm out! Yet, their logic didn't deter me at all.
Has It Already Been Forty-five Years?
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| In the land where I thought I'd be living |
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| La Gran Sabana, 1981 |
It's been a long time coming, the dream. Since I was 17, I had a vision with my boyfriend at the time. We praised the joys of living in nature. We knew a perfect place. We envisioned creating an intentional community there, centered on education, art, food production, and more. He went to the jungle to make it happen, and I didn't.
Instead, I had the opportunity to attend a US university on a full scholarship, and I took that instead of moving to a pristine, beautiful land with rivers and perfect weather. Forty-three years later, I am still in the city I came to attend college, the foggy city by the bay, beautiful San Francisco.
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| San Francisco, around 1995 |
Life happened. I raised my children here and supported myself through my own business, which catered to children and teachers, and found it very fulfilling. In San Francisco, I made friends with whom I play music. I have nature at my doorstep: the ocean that I visit almost every day. I have the mountains, the waterfalls, the rolling hills, the rugged coast. I also enjoy the jazzy joints, the quirky people, the rebels, the nerds, the disruptors, the opera, artists, entrepreneurs, and the diversity. I love San Francisco.
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| Yosemite, 2011 |
But also, I long for warmth, community, and affordability. My kids flew off the nest, and I don't have a neighbor to take me to the doctor if I'm in need. I cannot imagine myself at 80 with no help in this expensive city.
Community is fleeting here. People come and go. San Francisco is a place for trying new things, being adventurous, starting a business, looking for gold, and breaking the rules, but it does not support regular folks—teachers, plumbers, nurses —and even less so as we age. Most of my friends have moved, or live farther across the bay, and my kids cannot afford to live here either.
Back to The Drawing Board
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| Choroní, my happy place in Venezuela, 2017 |
Right before the COVID pandemic, I wrote "Twenty Years Is Nothing," a piece in which I described, with as much detail as possible, how I imagined myself in 20 years. I described my happy place in Venezuela. Just so perfect! And, rather idealized.
Next, I find the task of doing anything there daunting, under a dictatorship, with ever-rising inflation, lack of security or human rights guarantees. Way too hard to even think of it. The biggest stumbling block is how hard it would be for my kids to visit. Nope!
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| Oaxaca 2022 |
I visited Mexico and fell in love with Oaxaca in particular. I felt I could move there and see what would transpire. I did not follow through; not enough impetus. That was the "latest and greatest" effort I did in person.
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| My dream, 2023 |
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| My 3rd Operating Manual, 2023 |
In the meantime, I've been practicing methodologies for good living, self-understanding, my four brains, my demons, and hardwiring for happiness, as well as reiterating operating manuals. I've enlisted the help of coaches, groups, and webinars, and I have taken continuous steps towards refining my processes, planning, and organizing my Joyful Calendar. I keep busy trying to cultivate good habits, all of which often feel quite tangential. You get the picture.
Life continues. I focus on 1) learning about communities and community living, and 2) working towards a profitable online business that supports nomadic life. and 3) having fun! (I'm good at this). I practice by hopping from my mom's home to my home to my kids' homes and visiting possible places where to land later in life.
This Summer
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| Felix and I, 2010 |
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| Felix and I, fifteen years later, 2025 |
I had the golden opportunity to spend time with my 17-year-old grandson in Valencia, Spain, while he attended a music camp - this was truly great, a first for us, alone with no parents! I have never spent much time with him in a one-to-one situation- It was lovely.
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| Maru, Isabel and I, 2025 |
As usual, I connected with friends during my travels. Two high school friends and I, one whom I hadn't seen since I was 13 and another whom I saw maybe 10 years ago, gathered for paella. We shared stories accompanied by tinto de verano. The next day, Maru sends me an Instagram post about an ecovillage. That same week, another friend sent me a post about that same ecovillage. Hmmm, I'm in Valencia, it is close by, about an hour away. Hmmm! I decide to visit.
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| Planes, Standing where I think my house is supposed to be, 2025 |
In a flash, I found a community that is "joyful, safe, affordable, good for the people and good for the planet." I felt it when I stepped into the land.
In under two weeks, I joined the community and signed a membership that gives me the option for a home that will be built over the next couple of years.
What?
Is this even possible? I am ecstatic.
My judgmental self is calling me imprudent, and my free-bird self is encouraging me to go for it. I'm nervous. It is risky, and it requires a certain amount of trust, which my intuition says is a yes - we will make it happen. I'm going for it!
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| Architectural rendering of the townhouse, 2025 |
One goal down. Now, on to the next Worthy Goal: building a community with my new neighbors.
🌷
The Universe reminds me, again and again, how much dreams play a crucial role in making our wishes come true, and maybe, it is also trying to point out how Operating Manuals are actually magical! "Flash, bam, alakazam" Ha ha ha!
Hope you enjoyed this true story.
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| Flash, bam, alakazam- what a surprise! |
PS If you'd like to hear more about my newfound community, send me a message at rennea@mac.com
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