Autumn Praxis Open Residency 2024 - Residents' Reflections

Two residents share about their experiences of the Autumn 2024 Praxis Open Residency at the Life Itself Bergerac Hub - what they appreciated and how their time contributed to their inner growth.

Below are some quotes from interviews with two of our Autumn residents, sharing about what they experienced and appreciated during their time at the Hub during the Autumn Praxis Open Residency, which ran from 1st October to 15th December 2024.🍃

Pip — a designer from the UK, who is interested in the fields of mental health, design, mutual learning, and community living — joined the Autumn residency for 3 weeks, having also participated in other residencies at the Hub in the past.

She shared about some of the cosy and peaceful moments she appreciated, as well as the ways in which her time contributed to her inner growth and development:

I love the cosy nights around the fire where it's like… what comes to mind is the intergenerational connections that can happen in the hub, which I feel are really important. It reminds me of a podcast I was listening to that was talking about the role of aunties and, you know, like younger people just being able to sit behind the couch and listen to the wisdom of different generations. And I really feel like there's space for that here.

And also the river. I love the river, and it's been so sunny. Have just had walks every day… and I think it's such a nice balance of being able to be in a town, and be able to go for dinner if you want, for example, but then also to be in Nature.

[…]

[My time here] has almost given me the space to really think about what’s important. I think, you know, when you're in an environment all the time, you can't see yourself [so clearly]. So it's kind of given me space to really think about… also because it has coincided with me doing a course called Mortals around facing my mortality and what's really important. So it feels like the space here, and also doing that course, have allowed my priorities to change.

And I suppose the biggest change has gone from… When I came here, I was like, I know something's gonna change, but I don't really know what it is. And then now I've made a plan to leave London for a bit and go semi-nomadic and just travel between my family and friends to find a place where I can grow roots. So I suppose that was the thing I didn't expect that popped up: almost like, leaning back in and valuing living in relations. And I think because I can set those boundaries now, it's given me the space to be like, oh, I can do this. I can be around a lot of people and not get swept away and go further into burnout. Yeah. That feels like the biggest [way in which my time here has impacted my inner growth and development].

And also space to make a portfolio and really dive into that process of defining what I want to do and what I can give in service, how my skills can help — has been another theme as well.

Pip also shared what she finds unique and special about the Hub:

Another thing I love about this place is there's space for lots of different frames of viewing the world. And spirituality and faith being one of them, but not having that at the expense of critical thinking, is what I also really appreciate.

There also seems to be some sort of organic design principles in the space, I think, compared to other places I've been to where it feels either a bit more corporate and structured or the opposite. There's something which feels a little bit more balanced.

And I suppose the other thing I really appreciate as well was how in the kitchen, it's like a space to play, but in a way where you feel like you’ve got enough structure to be like, Oh, this is what I need to do. But there's not this pressure of like, Oh, I need to do it right. I really like that.

Olivia, a biomedical engineer from the U.S. who joined the residency for 1 week, and was new to conscious co-living and to many of the practices we explored together, shared about some of her favourite moments:

I really liked our 5Rhythms dance that we did on my first day right after going to the market. That was really cool just to move your body to the music, and it felt really freeing. It was still early on, so I was still a little anxious of like, how crazy could I be and not get judged? But everybody was dancing, and it felt like everybody was comfortable. So that was one of my favourite experiences.

Some of my other experiences that stood out to me… just, like, dinner conversations. We had a really powerful dinner conversation one night when I was here that left me in tears. And I think it's just learning about people's lives and people's conscious choices that they've made throughout their lives and why they have [made those choices]. There are a lot of powerful thinkers that are here, or at least while I've been here. And it's really interesting — they've made some powerful, maybe crazy to other people, choices during their lives. So it's interesting to understand the thought process behind going to Japan for 14 years, or, you know, backpacking places, or learning to ski in Canada when you're not from there. You know, it's like people just take risks here, and it's interesting to learn why they've taken those or how those moments have shaped them, those stories.

[…]

I would say, overall, it's like a family, a welcoming environment, but it's also a challenging environment. There are a lot of uncomfortable conversations and uncomfortable moments, whether that be an uncomfortable silence or uncomfortable because you're dancing and it's early in the morning or something like that. So it's definitely challenging, but everybody's very supportive. It's a welcoming environment, like I said, and I just really appreciated the atmosphere. It's a great place to grow, to get to know yourself, and to further your connections with yourself, your body and just other people and other ways of life.

N.B. the quotes were (minimally) edited for clarity.