About_Living in community — by Miriam DelaCruz¥
Wow! We are alive!!! And when I (re)meet someone and they ask me: - How are you? This is what I answer: -ALIVE! And nowadays just ALL of this is reason enough to be grateful. 🙏🏼
You can hardly imagine how challenging it is to stop here NOW and write this text, organize my ideas and share in more depth so many experiences and learnings of the last time…
->Clique aqui para ler esse texto em português (original)
There is the whirlwind of distractions of São Paulo’s noisy, urban life; The Digitalization process to which we are transitioning, that makes reading and writing increasingly unusual (to the detriment of other forms of expression and entertainment that are more instantaneous and full of temptations)…
Apart from the plus of having lost my laptop in a fire 🕯️ in April 2022, an accident that revolutionized my life (but I will tell this overwhelming story on another, more appropriate occasion, in which I can address it in detail, with all the care it requires). And only now at the beginning of 2024 did I get a new laptop.
It was a whole process of regeneration and restitution… Learning to rise from the ashes… A true rebirth of the Phoenix.
And in line with the philosophy of “Done is better than Perfect”, I gathered some shares and reflections on InTeNsEs 🔥Community experiences in Germany, where I had the unique opportunity to live for 3 years and truly immerse myself in German culture, until the point of developing my own German personality. (Period from 2020–2023 // I went to different places // Temporary experiences).
I count on your understanding, as it’s been a while since I wrote and I feel a certain urgency to share more, before they end up falling into the “nimbus of oblivion” and at least this “draft” and “masterpiece” remains for in the future I can came back and improve.
#Let´s go to Discover the World — Los geht ‘s!
In my experience of going to live abroad, in a culture with several aspects that were extremely contrasting with my Brazilian culture, I was given the opportunity to discover a new version of myself, outside of the major influences of the context in which I was inserted, and it was truly revealing, different aspects of my Being that could emerge, because often within the family nucleus and reality where we were born, we are stamped with patterns and archetypes that can be very challenging to disidentify.
In my opinion, living in a community is an experiment that we are creating, experiencing and learning simultaneously and the results are unpredictable and often surprising, both positively and negatively.
Going further, I believe that we are seeking and rescuing forms of life in society, as great civilizations have lived in the past. Highly organized communities such as Mayans, Incas, Aztecs, Indigenous Original Peoples of Brazil…
The Day by Day
I created a parody in German, of a well-known song in Germany, which summarizes in a few sentences the main fundamental tasks of our daily life in community. (Accompanies English translation).
Community Life
1.2: Morning Circle
3.4: Cleaning here
5.6: Going to get wood
7.8: Preparing lunch
9.10: Go to sleep / Or go to the bonfire
Mo-Do — Eins Zwei Polizei (Official Video) (youtube.com)
Self-Care
One of the roles I assumed within community life was to draw attention to the importance of CARE. Taking care of the space, taking care of each other, self-care. And it was a great sacrifice to create this moment “Spa Day” captured in the photo, and not end up simply being absorbed by the demands of hands-on work (which many ended up happening). And it was so beautiful when we stopped to take care of ourselves, do skin care, comb each other’s hair… Rescue our DIGNITY.
🌀Super-Power: One of my superpowers was taking on tasks that most people were unwilling to undertake, and still doing it in style. °•° Particles of consciousness.
Unique Moments
In most of these experiences, we were in rustic environments, with minimal structure…
One of the daily tasks was to fetch water from the source every day to supply the camp (water needed for the most basic things, such as cooking, washing dishes, filling the shower, watering the plants etc.).
On the other hand, there was an immensity of possibilities and opportunities to have a deep contact with nature and be surprised by truly SUBLIME moments…
👁️Iceberg in sight
Time to change direction. It was crucial to know when to jump out of the boat, after trying to warn the Captain that there was an iceberg ahead, but without major repercussions due to the lack of _Humility_ in listening.
And what was left for me was to gather all my courage and throw myself back into the Sea of Life… Swim alone… Fight first for my survival. Better than to collide with the reality that I had already seen up front, and end up reaping even more drastic consequences… Seriously!
There is a romanticism about living in a community that is a big MYTH. In reality it is extremely complex, fragile and visceral. I don’t think anyone is really ready to face what an experience like this requires. It is something that requires a profile, skills etc. And you need to be very careful with the place, people and all these details, as we have already seen every scandal out there… And deep traumas can be generated.
👁️Subject to errors and mistakes, this is my current perception, and it is not remotely an absolute truth, just my point of view based on the experiences I had.
The profile of those looking to live in a community
One of the aspects that I was able to notice is that in general, the profile of people who seek to live in a community are those who are adept at a more alternative life, who tend to have difficulty fitting into the traditional system of society, and are sometimes seen as the “black sheep of the family”.
It turns out that in daily life, many of the unresolved patterns imported from these relationships, whether willingly or not, also end up revealing themselves in community contexts. (I know that this approach is still shallow, it may sound controversial and if there is one thing I have learned in this life it is not to generalize. In my own experience I have encountered several “exceptions to the rule” and even people who were opposite to the stereotype of which they supposedly corresponded).
But it is a perception that I would like to unravel, exchange ideas, debate with other people. Expand my opinion on the subject…
And that led me to raise some questions, such as:
- To what extent would the roles played in the community be sustainable in the long term?
- To what extent were these skills authentic, and/or also stimulated by the fertile environment of the community?
- To what extent would patterns rooted at some point also reveal themselves?
References from the book The Gods and Man //Jean Shinoda Bolen
In my Jungian therapy sessions, I was recommended to read the book “The Gods and Man” and I began a more in-depth study of the Dionysus archetype, which brought a lot of light to some of these nuances.
It really deserves an in-depth study, especially if you are exploring this path of community life, but I leave here some excerpts:
Archetype Dionysus (or Dionysus)
“As we leave behind the city and our worries about work and responsibilities, seeking communion with Mother Nature, we can also get in touch with Dionysus. It can come to us when we are in nature and feel integrated with it. When we abandon our habitual conscious perception of the time and kilometers of the journey and surrender to the experience, we are transported to another dimension, where we feel ecstasy within us.”
The divine child
“The personal sense that “my” life has a sacred meaning, or that there are both human and divine elements in “my” psyche, occurs when one comes into contact with the divine child archetype, which often foreshadows the beginning of an adult’s spiritual journey or path to individuation.”
Children
“The man Dionysus is generally a “boy” and, therefore, he tends to be very successful with other people’s children. Their own children often go through frustrating experiences.”
We don’t have _Control_ but we have >Choices<
I always like to remind that putting myself in these contexts was a _CHOICE_ that I see as preparation for the challenges of today’s turbulent world. An invitation to leave my comfort zone, learn to live with other human beings in a high degree of involvement and complexity, exposed to extreme challenges, both in coexistence and those offered by the environment. |||R_a_D_i_C_a_L|||
Having experienced all these adversities, nowadays I value the simple things in our daily lives much more, such as the water that comes out of the tap to wash dishes, a hot shower to take a bath at home, a soft bed… TV with Netflix, electricity and free internet then… These are luxuries!
I have cured a lot of my material needs. I became a person |||MINIMALIST||| and I really transformed my consumption needs. Currently there is a Fine Materiality that satisfies me.
Differences that made all the difference
Coming from a loving, consistent, spiritual family, who always supported me, (((and who even went to Europe to visit me and experience a mega adventure traveling in a Motorhome for 1 month with no fixed destination))), made ALL the difference! Mainly for me to realize when things have reached a critical point (absence of material, emotional, spiritual base, common purpose, care, affection, etc.).
Other experiences that I also had in community contexts helped me identify when, for example, decision-making was centralized; To have a critical sense to reflect and question the dynamics of coexistence…
All my life experience and family base were fundamental in guiding me on another adventure of immersion in community life, this time in another country and with a lot of hands-on work.
And these elements helped me:
- Firstly, don’t lose myself;
- Knowing how always learn something (even when everything seemed chaotic and meaningless);
- Knowing how to position myself, exercising the muscles of respecting my limits;
- Be very careful with fanatical and radical ideas that have no legitimate basis, that preach sacrifices, etc. in favor of a greater objective and which often in reality hide the individual interests of just a few. Be very careful with this my Beloved!
To live in a community or not to live in a community? That is the question.
Would I live a community experience of this magnitude again?
- Maybe… In the present moment: -NO! ( ) JA oder (X) NEIN
I am still decanting, digesting, maturing the intensity of the lessons learned. All of this was already a big INPUT. But in the future… — Who knows!?
I still haven’t lost my faith in communities in this sense, because I believe there are so many formats and possibilities… And I joke that after having experienced community life in Germany, I’m already seasoned and prepared for other similar experiences anywhere else. HaHaHa
Return to Origin
It’s been exactly 7 months since I’m back in Brazil. And I continue in this process of (re)acculturation. Sewing together experiences, integrating, creating points of continuity, anchoring learning in my roots…
And without a doubt, I can be extremely grateful for all the experiences I had and come to the conclusion that with all the challenges, pains and delights:
Worth it!🪶Okay…The whole chicken!
“In nature, nothing is created, nothing is lost, everything is transformed”. -Lavoisier
I don’t regret it at all. But I needed to stop and start looking at the things that needed to be changed, and that all brought me back here. I accept things as they were. But I had the courage to start modifying what was necessary, using my wisdom to distinguish one thing from another.
And so it was written in the book of life.
LESHANAH TOVA🙏🏼
By: Miriam DelaCruz ✝️📋Event Management by Graduation 🖌Writer by Vocation 💝Artesan by Heart 🎨«Making Art And Your Part»
