Hello
LIFE AT ANAM CARA
When you become a part of the Anam Cara family you are embraced into the healing space of this beautiful Country that we reside upon. This is Wurrundjeri Country, and as a resident you will take part in rituals of gratitude and connection with Country, that we may remain present to her messages, medicines and requests. You will be invited to honour the ancestors of this place, while acknowledging and inviting your own ancestors from whichever part of the Earth you may hale. It is rugged and wild living, and you will become more and more in tune with nature's rhythms as this wildness fills your heart.
Your weeks take on a balanced rhythm between Karma Yoga work for the community, and your own space, quests and time out. At Anam Cara, the individual weaves with the collective, and the collective nourishes the individual, and so you may breathe strong in your own personal autonomy whilst being safely held in the bosom of tribe.
You will feel a healthy weight of responsibility for the land, the residents and guests, the animals and the infrastructure. You are needed and depended upon, and in turn you are supported by others.
Rest and relaxation time is prioritised and afforded great value. There is time to meditate, practice yoga, sing together and walk in nature. There is time to enjoy the simple camaraderie and kinship bonds of being with 'family'. There is much laughter and silliness too.
You deepen and secure your relationships with other residents while enjoying the constant fresh energy from guests coming and going.
But there is hardship that comes with living on the land, and attempting to live in community during these challenging times that we find ourselves in. To live at Anam Cara, one must be willing to look with raw honesty at one's own triggers, to own one's traumas, and to develop radical kindness to self and other. Whilst people's capacity to deal with conflict at any given time is respected, if resident at Anam Cara, be prepared to lean into difficulty and to bring conflict up into the light for engagement, healing and resolution. At Anam Cara you learn and expand through processes of authentic connection, non-violent communication and conflict engagement / resolution.
Living at Anam Cara and being a human means that you will likely make mistakes! Although we believe in strong healthy boundaries at Anam Cara, we also seek to practice forgiveness with one another, and to offer pathways back.
Children at Anam Cara have the chance to experience a wild and free childhood in nature, while observing, imitating and eventually being a part of, the meaningful work of the homestead. They also get to witness healthy and inter-generational relationship dynamics.
Anam Cara residents are encouraged to take up to 6 weeks break from the homestead per year. This allows individuals to get new perspectives outside of the community, take a break from one another, enjoy a spontaneity that is hard to fully achieve within the structure of the Anam Cara lifestyle, or go on retreat elsewhere. As we look at more healthful modes of reconnecting with Country, these 'breaks' from the land also somewhat mimic the human need for semi-nomadism, where we let Country rest for periods of time. Ideally there are several weeks where all residents take a break simultaneously, whilst taking it in turns to be present for animal care and watering gardens. It is also possible during these times to go on individual or family retreats by setting up camp somewhere else on the property away from the main community space.
