Living The City Girl's Dream

Moving out of the city and into the country was one of the best decisions I’ve ever made. Although, I didn’t initially feel that way. Deciding to leave Toronto was simple. My husband and I had made a decision for him to go to school and the best program for him was at Durham college. Coming to terms with the fact that I didn’t live in the city anymore wasn’t quite that easy. I was a city girl. It was who I was and I wasn’t going to let it go. I continued to hold onto the idea that I would move back downtown and that living in the country was only temporary. During this time (two years to be exact), I had the privilege of working at Lululemon with some pretty amazing people. It’s not exactly what you’re picturing. Yes, you wear stretchy pants and workout with your friends, but you’re also encouraged to create life goals and live out your dreams. I’m getting somewhere, trust me…

A couple of months before I decided to leave the store and make it as a photographer full time, we had a staff vision and goals evening. I laid on the floor with my eyes closed and listened to a series of prompted questions to help me visualize my life in 10 years.

What was I doing?

What did I see?

Where was I?

And so on. A lot of what I pictured myself doing didn’t surprise me. I worked from home, my husband and I had a family, we had a dog. What really shocked me was where I was. I wasn’t living in the city like I had always pictured. Our home was beautiful- log cabin style for the win. And it was smack dab in the middle of a forest, near a body of water. To say I was thrown off is an understatement, but the feeling I had during this exercise was too great to ignore. In that moment I finally realized what I was doing wrong. I had be consistently trying to live my life the way I thought I “should” be and in turn was ignoring my heart and doing the things that give me joy and peace. My semi-conscious decision to move to the country really was the best thing I could have done. And now I’m living the city girls dream.

Living outside of the city has allowed me to embrace all of the amazing things nature has to offer. I live in an area where trails, water, fields, and adventure are all readily available. It’s truly life changing. One of the things I have enjoyed the most the last couple of years has been caring for my organic vegetable garden (vegan girls rejoice). Although I still have a lot to learn, gardening has become something that I will continue for the rest of my life. Getting outside and digging in the dirt is a beautiful solitary experience. And vegetables straight off the plant? Amazing.

Which brings me to the images below. Here are a few frames from this years garden that I shared with my mom. A mix of digital and cell phone images sporadically taken throughout the summer.

What is something that you could do differently to start living your ideal life? What if you listened to your heart, what would change?

And if you want to start a garden on your patio/balcony/window in the city… I’m your girl. Let’s do this.