self portrait tuesday: personal history week 3

This is one of my favorite old photos. It's of my dad, at about age 5, probably taken in 1939 or 40. He would have turned 71 yesterday. Now, I certainly don't want to leave behind anything about my dad, but lately I've been moving away from the rural living dream I've built up, and what this picture could represent, in part. The ultimate fantasy would be living like Tasha Tudor, totally self-sufficient and nearly technology free. The second tier is to simply live a farm life way, way out in the back of beyond. But the thing is, I've lived in cities all of my adult years, and I like them. I seriously doubt I could adapt now to rural living, at least not happily. Anything can happen, but moving to the country is something I'm no longer trying to achieve.

Comments

[Blair]

What a nice photo, I wish I had some photos of my dad as a kid.
Peter and I think talk of one day retiring to space, land, and simple. Peter would do it in a heartbeat, I'm not so sure. I need to get better not forgetting things at the grocery store if we going to move 50 miles from the nearest one some day, you know?

[Susan]

Homesteading had it's appeal, until we started measuring quality of life by the exact mileage to the nearest bookstore. We now live about a quarter mile away from our favorite one and have realized our suburban bliss.

That really is a great photo. How times have changed since such a young "Davy Crockett" could run around with a real shotgun.

[Kathy]

Sweet photo of your dad. We trade peace and quiet for convenience but I miss the services offered in the city. My mother says that she "always wants to live where the cement grows"
This is after she hears my stories of mud, water well pumps dying on Christmas eve, heating the house with a woodstove, coyotes taking my cats and other "horrors".

[miranda]

That's such a cute photo.

My fiance grew up on a farm, and hated it. There is a similar picture of his dad, except his dad is on a bike and the dog standing next to him is a Border Collie.

I think... my fiance is still very tied to his rural childhood home, though he wouldn't want to live there... he still goes through an insurance agent there, bought his recent car there, etc. But he got out as soon as he could and has never gone back to live. His parents no longer actively farm; they sold their livestock when they realized none of the kids wanted to farm (after a childhood of farm chores), and they now rent most of their fields to other local farmers. But the thing that I've noticed is that most city dwellers' idea of rural life is more an idea of historical rural life than modern rural life. Most relatively prosperous small-farmers who aren't Amish are very modern, many are college-educated, most have day jobs. The major difference between my future in-laws and someone who lives in the suburbs is that they have many, many barn cats, and an outdoor dog who is actually pretty safe outdoors.

But, you can always live a bit of that fantasy by visiting Amish country, where life is a little closer to that. PA and OH are good places to check out.

[LadyLinoleum]

I feel exactly as you do. The romance of rural living sounds wonderful, but my reality is tied to urbanity. That would be difficult for me to part with.