Everyone should move away from the cities

[FastQuoter]

Hey everyone. Posting here for more discussion. I want to start a conversation that needs to be had. I've read a number of posts regarding families escaping the big cities for elsewhere and it's been an interesting read. I've used it for my own research too because honestly whilst living in a city has its perks, there is a big trade off regarding one's health, stress levels and community, amongst other things.

I read where village/rural communities across the UK are hostile to Londoners moving in - but it's going to be more of a thing and should be encouraged!

Essentially, I myself, and many other of my friends I've talked to, believe that living in a more village/rural setting is ideal, but we fear the unknown. We fear the reception from others and if we'll fit in here in the UK, which is fair enough but hear me out! I believe more people need to live in rural settings, go back to our roots, the way our ancestors lived.

Grow your own food! I'm telling you they'll be a time soon when such a skill will be vital. Sustain yourself and do not rely on the government to feed you. Please!

Learn to work with your hands! Whether that's sewing (like our mothers and grandmothers did), cooking from scratch, embroidery, hair making, etc etc there is something wonderful about seeing the fruits of your labour. 1 Thessalonians 4:11-12 "And that ye study to be quiet, and to do your own business, and to work with your own hands, as we commanded you; 12 That ye may walk honestly toward them that are without, and that ye may have lack of nothing."

Beneficial for you and your children If you have young children, I can't see anywhere better for them to grow up. To be surrounded by nature as God intended (God put Adam and Even in the garden of Eden). The learn life skills from young.

Please be kind in the comments, this is my view and I certainly welcome rebuttals and counter-arguments but do be respectful.

You do know you can grow food in the cities? Thee are allotments, houses have gardens and those in flats with balcony’s can grow on those, ok those without may have issues.

sewing etc can be done by anyone anywhere

there are lots of green areas, parks etc in cities that can be visited, and cities have good transport links and therefore you could go out to the countryside/ sea side for days out

as to being made welcome I would suggest anyone would be welcome to move to most places, part of the issue sometimes though is that city dwellers don’t actually do the homework before they move and then suddenly realise there is no public transport, kids need taking to school a few villages away, there’s no shops within walking distance

you move all city dwellers out of cities and the city is just moved elsewhere

and imagine the damage to the environment as more people have to travel further to get to work in the cities, although if no one lives there then businesses will go bust so more unemployment

I say live in cities, use active transport and grow your own food!

I lived in London for the first fifty years of my life. I like where I live now. I don’t think I’d fully appreciated how much I would miss London before I’d moved if I had I wouldn’t have done it
I have slightly more space than before and have grown more veggies etc
but I’m not saving the planet by any means - I didn’t learn to drive until I moved out of London - I couldn’t cope with buses every two hours so I had no choice
I keep chickens but if I stopped to work out the cost of each egg I’d probably faint - unless you have the economies of scale there’s no profit or savings in it

@Readyforslippers they do have internet, but no mobile signal at all.
I struggle with just not being able to get anywhere without a car. The "local shop" is two miles away - across fields. It's just exhausting having to plan everything. The green fields (currently brown because of the lack of rain) are all well and good, but I'm not a fan of a wayward cow.
They love it.
On the plus side: I do like that there's very little light pollution and fun wildlife like hedgehogs, rabbits and deer.

To be fair, we have mains drainage, mobile signal and reliable power. I grow our summer veg and fruit, but rely on the supermarket the rest of the year. I shoot but only clays. I guess we would survive if I had to forage. Let's hope I never have to try.

Im not moving anywhere I can’t get greek food or a bacon naan by deliveroo.

How odd.

Very weird that in her other post she’s claiming to be Black and framing it all around “our ancestors in Africa/Caribbean” and “we black folks”. But here she’s stripped all that out and made it about “Londoners”/“people”.

Looks like a textbook example of digital blackface. Adopting a Black identity in one forum then dropping it elsewhere while still keeping the same bizarre sermon 😕

People can draw their own conclusions but worth flagging the inconsistency.

Not to mention knitting your own lentils

OP I think you're going down the Trad Wife route and that will get you short shrift on here

No thanks. If I had to grow my own food or weave my own clothes I would be dead in six months. The point of living in an advanced economy is to allow specialisation and division if labour. If I wanted to reenact some utopian fantasy I wouldn’t do it in the UK.

And also while theres a lot to love about the countryside, I think it’s pretty disastrous for teenagers and young adults.

So how do we get money then?

The whole thing was weird. I can’t take anyone seriously that starts quoting the bible.

I think you have made some interesting points, although it is all a bit jumbled together.
Just to add though ………
Although we might dream of a Beatrix Potter life in the country, the reality is that it is very hard work and any small move from reliance on the state might be worthwhile. Our aims are muddied by jobs and family and time and the fact that self sufficiency is hard to attain and takes many years of learning. The best place to learn to grow is an allotment, where you are with a community of like-minded people. There are more craft groups in towns than rurally. Learn to sew, learn to knit, make baskets whatever you like. You can forage anywhere. Learn to cook and economise. Live simpler. Consume less. The rural idyll can be quite lonely - I suggest you start your journey in your current home, be that in a city or suburb - learn traditional skills and find a community of likeminded people , then look to moving to a more rural community when you have a clearer idea.

AI

Me too, what is it? Did our ancestors do it?
I think your post is a bit idealised, we can't all live in the countryside and cities a re constantly growing all over the world so I think the trend is the opposite.Your post is very sweet.

Thank you for taking my question how it was meant and for replying. I can totally understand your points, it's just interesting to see all sides.

Absolutely not. It would make housing even more unaffordable when people come to villages with their London property cash.
It isn't viable from an employment perspective.
You can learn to mend and sew without upping sticks.
And it isn't the darling buds of may.

Not sure what the fuck the bible has to do with any of this either.

Are you seriously planning to move into a village and start growing your own vegetables and milking goats?

“I read where village/rural communities across the UK are hostile to Londoners moving in - but it's going to be more of a thing and should be encouraged!”

Why is it going to be more of a thing?

Why should it be encouraged?

Small communities have limited resources- such as medical care, housing and schools.

Which means any exodus of people from the city into these communities will drive up property prices which makes it difficult for locals to afford to buy in their own communities. It makes it difficult to get a medical appointment if there are only limited doctors. Also, additional children being enrolled at local schools increases class sizes. It increases traffic on roads and makes peaceful village life a whole lot less peaceful.

That’s why locals are hostile.

I’ve lived in the outback of Australia and lived in the city and if you don’t have a strong social network then living in a small community is hell. It can be very very isolating. And there’s nothing to do. I used to go out and do bush walks just for something to do. I hate bush walks.

I think if your social needs are low and you want to take your dog out on long walks then moving to a village might work for you. But you live in one of the biggest cities in the world with so much going on culturally - moving to a sleepy English village where people hate you might not be the idyllic life you hope it to be.

I certainly see the allure though…. When I think English countryside I think of farming land but I also think of the Lakes District and otters swimming and random little hedgehogs walking about. I wouldn’t care how much the locals would hate me - I would be quite happy if there are otters and hedgehogs.

…it actually sounds wonderful 🥹

This is quite an odd post. Like it's been written by a couple of different people.

this is an absurd debate. people will choose what suits them, rather than trying to prove their choices are better than others.

"Blessed be the fruit."
"May the Lord open."

Hair making projects for you....
(picture incoming...)

Half of London already moved to Cornwall. Now the locals can't afford to live there any more.

You'll find it's the incredible sense of entitlement and superiority that makes Londoners hated - and the idea they come with that they're they're going to be living The Good Life when they haven't got a clue.

I’ve always lived in the countryside but don’t make hair, do embroidery or make food from scratch. I’m obviously not very good at this 🤣

dh grows veg but I won’t eat it because of bugs 🙈🤣. I like stuff from Tesco!

I live in a village, grow my own food (I would starve to death if I had to rely on it!), and can crochet. Living the dream!

Honestly though, transport links are awful, I HAVE to drive to work, can’t be as spontaneous on nights out etc as a taxi costs £50 back to my village from the nearest town.

There are pros and cons

I'm pretty sure you can cook from scratch and sew whether you live in a city or a village.

@Readyforslippers Yes true, I meant that as a general point for everyone to strive to do. There's a great skill in finding something to do/make with your hands.