In a recent volunteering week at a countryside youth hostel for walkers and climbers, in the heart of the beautiful English Lake District. I was part of a ten person group who were there to prepare the hostel for the next six months of heavy use by visitors. We all worked together to clear rooms of furniture in advance of commercial carpet cleaners. In small teams of two and three we painted the common room and dining rooms, we painted corridors and stairwells. One day I worked outside and pushed wheelbarrows of gravel to create the paths around the campsite. On another I chopped up small branches and old timber pallets to create the kindling for the open fire in the main common room and bar area.
It was a brilliant week away from home, working at practical tasks each day and then being free in the late afternoon for a walk on the mountains that surrounded us and a chat in the bar and by the log fire each evening. Each day I chatted with whoever I was paired up with for our work and it was fascinating to see a glimpse of the lighter life in action for these other volunteers.
Lisa was on the same week with me. Incredibly she has spent 40 consecutive weeks living at hostels and working or volunteering to have somewhere to stay. She has a small van which she can sleep in when not working at a hostel. It is kitted out with a gas stove, a foam covered bed platform, blankets and a couple of bags of her clothing. I learn that she has a one bedroom flat in a small community on the border between England and Scotland and she goes back to this as and when she is not volunteering. By structuring her volunteering weeks on an often back to back basis, she is often away from her flat for three months at a time.
Having minimal possessions in the flat she has created a lifestyle where she meets new people every week she is away. Her expense money covers all her costs of travel between hostels. Like me and the rest of us, she was fed and given good accommodation during the working week, so her savings increase steadily across the year.
Many of the people who formed my group of volunteers that week have made volunteering and working, in places that provide food and accommodation, a strong part of their lighter lifestyle. Of the other nine I worked alongside, five of them all volunteered regularly and spent between six weeks and twelve weeks each year away from their own homes. So just two of the ten of us were new to this way of living lighter. Half of my new friends were single and half had a partner at home.
My week in their company was a tremendous insight into how you can have more opportunity and greater adventure. Each of the people I spoke with about this lifestyle choice said directly to me or more casually in group conversations, that they had cut back on their possessions at home in order to be able to see a volunteer opportunity they wanted and apply for it. They knew they could lock up the house or apartment and head off to the location to enjoy themselves while contributing to a cause they believed in. In this case the creation of clean and refreshed accommodation for the walkers, climbers and runners who look to stay with like minded people when enjoying the countryside, and being able to return at dusk to such gorgeous locations and good evening company.
Could you manage a week like this somewhere with an organisation who would appreciate your help, support and time?