Often people have an idyllic image of rural life. They see trees, fields, sunsets and sunrises, though of course these are only a small part of the reality of living in a rural environment. Getting to grasps with the change of environment from that of a town is half the battle of finding the gold at the end of the rainbow.
The journey is indeed a long one, with many stumbling blocks in the way, though as you will see as you journey through the maze with this article, the possibility of seeing the advantages of rural life is a real one that can be achieved if viewed through a realist's eyes. The considerations are numerous. Beyond the obvious advantages, looking on the bleak side to get a grasp of reality is essential. There may be many differences between rural and urban lifestyle, and they help you to discover the character within yourself which has perhaps lain dormant behind the apathy of urban lifestyle for far too long.
*Acceptance.
*Education.
*Jobs.
*Convenience.
*Tran sportation.
*Health care
Acceptance by the local people is something that town people worry about, though without the experience, what they fail to see is that in a rural lifestyle what you do in your day to day life gets noticed, and acceptance isn't a natural process. Country people are suspicious of outsiders and it takes a while to gain their trust. Compare this with a town where perhaps you may never meet your neighbor, and accept that earning trust is your job, because once you gain the trust of people in a small rural community, that trust is solid as a rock, and the loyalty you see in return worthy of the effort put in.
Rural people are not easily impressed by what you own, and prefer to use judgment on who you are which is a much more valuable assessment than the shallow acceptance of city slickers for those who have, rather than those who have not. Find acceptance in a rural community and the richness it gives to your life is such that people accept and support you through good times and bad, and take you as their equal.
Education.
One may think that small town schools offer less opportunity to their children. After all, who would work in a backwater town? You would actually have miscalculated. In a small town, the teachers have more time, are less stressed by life in general, and take that time to offer your children a better education and a solid foundation upon which to base their lives.
Jobs.
It's not easy to earn a living or to start a business in a small rural town, though if you find a niche where your expertise is needed, it really can prove beneficial for you and for the town you choose to live in, in that you are offering more alternative to those folk who live there and if your ethos for work is serious, and your attitude towards customers reliable and friendly, word will spread, and you will get regular customers who know loyalty. If looking for a job, flexibility helps you to settle.
Whether it is picking fruit or gathering crops, waitressing in a local cafe or helping with school transport, there is work, though it may not pay city wages. The way country people compensate for having less hard earned cash is by living more on necessities than luxuries, and going back to roots. The advantage of rural life is that it sets a standard and gets a human being back to their roots and the very foundation of give and take.
Convenience.
Country people may live a quieter life and appear to have a slower and calmer lifestyle, though much of this is imposed by where they live. Conveniences like Malls and access to towns means a long drive for them, although what this does is make them appreciate and use those opportunities wisely. Whereas in a town, you may shop half a dozen times a week and waste a fortune, rural living offers you a great advantage in that you learn not to waste, and also learn to plan those trips so as not to lose opportunities. Learning to make do with what is available is a great character builder and brings out the strength of character we all need to surface from time to time, as we adapt to an environment that doesn't have everything we need on tap.
Transportation.
In a small town, perhaps the transportation is limited. It may be necessary to have a car simply to get to the village to talk to people or to visit a local homestead. Reliability matters more, and people tend to take care of their vehicle because instead of being seen as a status symbol, they are seen as a means of going from A to B, and that's what they were designed for. Local transport to outlying towns may be in short supply, though you learn to look after what you have, so that it is always reliable, making you more responsible for your own life and wellbeing.
Health care.
There are several ways of looking at the health care questions posed by those living outside a rural town. The availability of doctors, nurses, hospitals and the like may be sparse, though what inevitably happens in a rural environment is that you feel healthier. The air is fresher, the pastures greener, and chances are you will eat better food than you would if presented with fast food outlets on every street corner.
Checking that you have a local doctor and being prepared for emergencies is enough to let this aspect become acceptable and easy to cope with. People have lived in rural communities for years, and the lifespan of country people is longer because of the physical aspects of country living, combined with healthy eating and lifestyle.
Beyond the green hills and the trees, the lakes and the sky-line is a whole new life waiting for those who follow in the footsteps of the pioneers of today, going back to their roots and learning the value of close communities who care for their neighbors, and share their lives with each other, allowing space for privacy, though being there when the need arises. The winter turns to spring, the season of rebirth, and all the elements of living in the country remind us that God hasn't forgotten even the small towns that others may never discover, as the crocus and daffodil start to surface and the sky shows promise of another day of undisturbed freedom.
Gone are the commuters, the sad gray faces, the highways filled with cars driven by strangers, side by side each day on their way to work. Houses like boxes are replaced with homesteads of friends, and the oak tree stands proud for good reason with the acorns assuring it and the world around it of a fruitful future.