The constant interactions and influences within a local community can be understood as an active collective memory. Each time a member demonstrates a serving behavior, and it is recognised or witnessed by another, that aspect of the collective memory is reinforced. This is a…
Inspired by the cleaning scenes in Japanese films like Howl's moving castle, I've adopted a new approach to cleaning my floors. Instead of reaching for the mop, I get down on all fours and push a cloth along the floorboards. This method may seem unconventional, but for me, it's a…
When building / starting a new community, a main challenge arises. It is that we are influenced and moulded by our past environment. We have been exposed to that environment for a very long time. Our way of being, our behaviours, our thoughts, our way of seeing, is for the…
A rather short note for now. Gathering people in a context that is to some degree shielded from the typical modern / unwanted life. This space gives a far greater chance to cultivate something new. To start afresh, to rebuild and redirect from new values, with new knowledge, with…
To recognise that an aligned environment, including the people around me, is crucial for moving towards my desired direction in life with greater ease and success. I need a group of people who dance the same way I want to dance. By dance, I mean the full spectrum of life and…
Throughout history, humans have sought to harness the power of the natural world to enhance their own strength and vitality. One fascinating example of this is the ancient practice of consuming the heart of a lion, believed to imbue the eater with the animal’s courage and…
Humanity has continually developed technology to enhance its quality of life. These advancements have reshaped and benefited society, but they come with trade-offs. Each time we embrace a new technology and make it a part of our lives, we become dependent on it and lose something…
To spend a lifetime earning external wealth for that day when is retired and work is done. Once arrived, one's external accumulated wealth is fuel for the next life chapter. For now wanting to live a different kind of life. But one does not arrive with external…
I believe that to maintain healthy function, it is advantageous to look up both sides of the spectrums in our life. To be exposed to light but also a fair bit to the darkness. To enjoy the heat be also exposed to the cold. To be with others and to be able to be alone. The list…
Instead of just focussing on one practice to improve one's life. To address more domains. Yet to cycle through practices over time, instead of keeping with just one. To keep the 80-20 rule in mind and maximise benefit by nurturing more domains and with decreased duration. Keeping…
A few months ago I moved to the city and into a house that I share with others. In the past, when living in a yurt, I experimented with living closely to the ground. I was motivated/happy to live like this again. So, with no bed and no chair, I made a sober ground dwelling space…
The impact of a local environment on behaviour is one I like to focus on when it comes to arranging a habitat. It is easy to find oneself in an environment that does not match up with the actual way one wants to live. When done right, the environment can free energy and support /…
Now, that I live and work in the city I often go for an evening walk. Even though the winter evenings are dark already, I dwell in the darker areas where no lights shine. After a day of lights and shining screens, it brings me some relief to spend time in the dark. It brings…
Scything I enjoy more and more. When done right, and I am still learning for sure, it is a calming experience. Especially when scything early in the morning. When the world is still quite. When leaf & stem are still damp. Hydrated fresh greens are most easily cut. Similar to…
Since a few days, a mass of starlings swarms across the property. In the morning and evening, they put on a spectacular show. Amazing to see these birds become one giant harmonious play in the sky. The timing of the birds within the flock is stunning. Just like the silence that…
Nowadays information comes to us in big quantities and through various channels. There is a need to know what information one can trust / is true. The most obvious reaction to need is to find a way to validate information. This way we can separate the information that is false…
Since a long time, I went out again for a run. As in most activities, if not all, Spot joins me. Going for a walk or a run is one thing he gets excited about each and every time. Near the end of our runs, he often replenishes himself with water from a puddle. It is so inspiring…
Het is er van gekomen, de boomstronk die er maanden lang lag heeft eindelijk een plaats gekregen tussen het groen. Deze bijenwoning is een experiment met een meer natuurlijke aanpak. De bijenwoning is een uitgehold boomstronk met vier poten, vier levende poten. De poten zijn…
(Work In Progress) Ik zou graag schrijven over de totale energie die nodig is om processen in stand te houden. Veel van de energie gaat naar het controleren van het proces. Veel van die processen lijken te groot geworden en zijn ver van elegant, efficient, doeltreffent. Ze zijn…
The path towards the life I desire often involves leaving certain things behind. Moving into a life more of my choosing meant for me that the importance/relevance of the weekly rhythm would naturally diminish. This standard weekly rhythm is where many of us dance their life upon.…
I love for animals, such as our dog Spot, to be more integrated into my daily life. A life where dogs (or any other animal) have more freedom and fulfill more roles as they do now, is something I dream off. In the past many dogs where bred because they needed to fulfil a certain…
Ik heb een ongewoon werk ritme. Met werken bedoel ik dan werken voor een loon. Soms werk ik een maand aan een stuk, soms een week, soms enkele de voormiddag en soms werk ik een maand lang niet. Ik doe verschillende interim jobs en werk gestaag als webdesigner en developer. Het…
I would love to see communities that jump out with their own unique vibe & theme. Communities that are really creative with the shaping of the terrain, with the style and function of the structures, the way they organise themselves. I want to get closer (in that general…
Changing my way of living comes with introducing something new. For example letting go of material excess in my life. With this one change comes a whole new range of new life "style" changes as they are connected with it. When I change one aspect of my life it seems like it is…
Een paar jaar geleden had ik het idee om een vzw, een legale structuur op te richten. Dit idee ontstond als gevolg en noodzaak door hoe ik me graag in de toekomst wou bewegen. Hoe ik in het leven wou staan, in wat voor wereld/community/plek ik graag zou wonen. Als gauw merkte ik…
Ik wil gewoon grond; geen landbouw grond, geen bouw grond, geen recreatie grond, ... Ik wil gewoon grond. Grond waar we op wonen, slapen, eten, oogsten, wandelen, planten, zwemmen, ... Om dan te zien dat door de diversiteit aan invullingen deze "alles" grond een veel complexere…
On one evening, the residents of the community where I stay distributed the money from a job that everyone participated in, through a process. Instead of dividing money according to a fixed pattern or key, the final distribution of the money is more flexible and unpredictable…
How I see it, one of the basic dynamics/movements that are supportive to form a stable community, is the ability for people to move in and out roles. To be able to move in and out the role of caretaker, of gardener, of follower, of leader, of cook, etc. To fill in, to glide into…
Some sort of open letter to the world. To bring forward our starting/initial idea and intent. In the hope it does strike a personal note with people who can aid us. Aid in the search and obtaining of land. Most likely to be in 3 languages nl/fr/en Because telling our story and…
It has been a while I have seen this video but it still speaks to me; Jean Leidloff with The Continuum Concept.…
Maybe living within a community needs a glue. Something that sticks it together. But that seems like the wrong word though. It feels like keeping something together that can not be together on it's own. Sticking it together preventing the parts to move. Maybe community needs more…
I love to create things in a way they can be easily uncreated. Most items we buy today, a house, a car, become a burden when they no longer have a purpose. The processes involved to uncreate those objects is huge. This stone floor on the other hand does not use cement or glue.…
Barefeet walking gives one's feet a sturdy massage. Doing so it can, according to my experience, loosen up all kind of things. In foot reflexology, different zones on the sole of the feet are related to corresponding organs. Walking barefeet for first times could present some…
It is possible in the world today with all our rules and restrictions to create an environment where the inhabitants can live their lives freely and that their way of living is protected, not interfered with. An animal reserve, maybe there lays opportunity. I have pondered if it…
The body, the most efficient and direct converter. Converting sunlight into your needs. Power your body with foods that grow as close to Earth's skin. Doing so you found the most direct way to harvest energy from the sun and turn into into your needs. Everything about you…
I would love to have a travelling or nomadic element in my life. Not in the form of a holiday, an annual vacation, a compensation for my regular life, or something pure recreational. But more so as an integrated functional aspect of my life. I picture it as me living in a…
To see the endless fields of green, unused, just laying there. Whole kingdoms could have cropped those fields. Now they are the home of cows, if any. Now they just lay there, unused. Now they just lay there, untouched. Unused. While the man in the city lives to pay his quarters.…
A tryout in tiny home living. I have been exploring/sketching many houses.…
What it would be like to live without the man created concept of time. I would like to experience a season, as a starter, without any time references. To be unaware of the amounts of days that have passed and unable myself to calculate it. To be more attune to the rhythm of night…
It's February and one expects cold winter days. But a few days ago it felt warmer than usual. For me it was a good opportunity to try and act more on what I experience and less on habits. Doing so it felt warm enough to take off my sandals and grant my feet some freedom. Walking…
How I would like to see hubs of tiny communities arise upon the barren agro cultural fields. How borders would be nonexistent, how it becomes just one whole. How borders become vague and give rise to beautiful new dynamics. How the world becomes big again and adventure and travel…
I am walking down a forest with a bright green canopy and a brown yellow floor. The kind of forest that lets light in, and highlights it’s own colors. It’s wide and spacious and it brings relaxation to the person who wanders it. It’s nice to be in these forests and I am so happy…
How I would love to build or join a small community. To have a home base where I can return to. Where all my belongings are and where the heart is. To have a place where I can be myself. Where the diversity in us strengthens us. Where all members see the qualities in each other.…