The Richness of RemaININg

THere's a nostalgia that stirs withIN me …,

A yearnINg not for new vistas, but for the endurINg embrace of the Known — the cultivated, the consolidated, the crystallized, the cherished.

ThIS longINg harkens back to a simpler (albeit, more sophisticated) era, One when the place you INhabited was All tHere really was … and that was enough. IN fact … it was plenty.

IN an era wHere the allure of the exotic and undiscovered calls us to distant shores, I fINd mySelf more / most drawn to the familiar corners of the place I call Home — to BEINg Rooted somewHere, not just anywHere.

Let it BE Known that I AM WELL-acquaINted with the restlessness of LivINg IN a place that feels constrictINg and wHere every day IS a countdown to departure. When I left Canada and came back Home to the Balkans, to wHere I was Born, to wHere I was raised, to the Soil that cradles my Ancestors, to wHere I BElong, by Blood … that dissolved. Evenly. Elegantly.

A paradigm shift, INdeed.

Now, I AM so softened, so settled, so satiated wHere I AM.

I no longer fantasize about my next vacation. I no longer have to Plan (elaborate and expensive) escapes from a Life that feels too constant, too draININg, too dissonant, too artificial. INstead, I crave the depth and decadence that comes from stayINg Rooted IN One place. The very idea of leavINg feels like steppINg aWay from a treasure trove of connection, CommUNITY, coherence and contINuity.

What INtrigues me the most IS the (sINcere) worry People Voice when I share my preference for tendINg to my Home, INvestINg IN CommUNITY, and enrichINg Life wHere I AM, rather than wanderINg afar. ThIS common reaction HighLights a curious cultural bias that equates movement and mobility with progress and realistically, prestige. I AM often met with confusion and concern, as if place-holdINg IS less valuable, vital or vibrant than BEINg IN a perpetual state of departure.

"You're BEcomINg withdrawn," some say, as if my Choice to stay Rooted makes me distant.

"You're BEINg antisocial," some tell me, (mis)diagnosINg my Home-centered Life as isolation and reclusion.

Yet to me, stayINg Home IS not escapism — it's the epitome of engagement. By fully BEINg Here, I fully INhabit Life as it IS unfoldINg right BEfore me.

THere IS somethINg strange about BEINg repeatedly asked to justify why I prefer the richness of remaININg over the restlessness of perpetual relocation.

My affINity for permanence — IN both People and places — IS not a sign or symptom of pathology, as some project onto me, but rather a primal and Purposeful orientation.

I have come to Know that our culture’s pervasive restlessness IS Rooted IN a collective condition of Homesickness. An INtergenerational and INHERited social dis-ease fuelled by both subtle and overt acts of domicide throughout Human History, and exacerbated by ongoINg efforts to destroy THE HOME (on every level and from every angle). It’s thIS exact sense of (compounded) displacement that makes it so easy for INdividuals to detach and drift aWay to the next destINation (and realistically, dopamINe hit). ThIS social dis-ease IS simply a reflection of the deeper, more profound Spiritual dis-ease of not BEINg Rooted IN God.

What happens when you chronically upRoot and repot a Plant?

It get’s dis-eased and often dies from (chronic) systemic shock.

Just as as any Plant needs time to anchor and establish its Roots, to absorb nutrients from the Soil, and to acclimate to its environment to thrive, so too do People require consistency and constancy to flourish. Each time a Plant IS upRooted, stress INhibits its growth; it must relocate it’s energy and efforts toward reestablishINg it’s Root system, rather than maturINg, FlowerINg and BEarINg Fruit. Similarly, when INdividuals are contINually movINg from place to place, they struggle to form and establish Root systems and foundations. ThIS perpetual state of transition leads to a Life wHere True potential remaINs just out of reach, as a Person IS not granted the stability necessary for True growth.

To constantly BE displaced IS to BEcome and BE Rootless — and to BE Rootless, IS to BEcome and BE Fruitless.

Just as a Plant struggles to thrive when constantly moved and Rootless, a Person without a sense of 'Home' faces a dimINishment of Spirit, degradation of vitality and degeneration of health and WELLBEINg. Rootlessness denies the essential connection to place (and the CommUNITY of that place), leadINg to a gradual erosion of identity and BElongINg — key nutrients for both survival and thrival.

To stay put IS to allow Roots to deepen, relationships to ripen to their full potential, and CommUNITY’s to rise IN resonance and resilience.

The deeper the Roots, the deeper the relations. The deeper the relations, the deeper the reciprocity. The deeper the reciprocity, the deeper the resilience. The more WE are INtertwINed with our environment and each other, the more robust our INdividual and collective capacity to adapt and thrive BEcomes and IS.

It turns out that …, the grass IS not greener on the other side, or over tHere … it’s green wHere you are grounded. WHere you Create and cultivate the conditions for it to BE green by pourINg your Presence INto it.

God Bless you, BELoved.

Anja