We didn’t move into an intentional community because we had the answers. We moved in because we had questions, and we were open to exploring them. What if the pace of life wasn’t something to keep up with, but something to set for yourself? What if learning wasn’t confined, but just a key part of everyday life? What if home wasn’t a place, but in the way you choose to live? While we’ve had a taste of community living before, this experience is on a much larger scale. It’s an ecosystem of people, ideas, and experiences constantly evolving. The dynamic is complex and seems to be ever shifting, and that’s exactly what makes it so interesting.

The phrase intentional community often makes people raise an eyebrow, as if we’ve disappeared into the woods to follow a leader. In reality, it’s a way of living with purpose, where all voices matter, connections are prioritized, and shared values / many different outlooks guide us. We were drawn here for community centered homeschooling, and that’s exactly what we’ve found.

I’ve been reading and researching intentional communities for a while now, diving into the patterns, the history, and the underlying dynamics that shape them. One of the most fascinating things I’ve discovered is the concept of community archetypes – the roles people play within these groups, and how those roles come together to create a whole. This is beyond labels, labels define and confine, but archetypes are rooted in the human experience. Archetypes speak to the roles we naturally step into, the patterns that have shaped communities for generations. They are reflections of deeper callings and ways of being. Shaping how we build, lead, nurture, and create. Archetypes exist not just in intentional community living, but in any group of people who come together with shared values and purpose. The Nurturer, the Visionary, the Rebel, the Caregiver, the Organizer, the Healer, the Sage… and the list goes on. Each archetype brings its own energy, its own strengths & challenges. What I find so poetic about it is that these roles aren’t fixed, they can shift, evolve, and even merge. There’s a constant flow as people step in and out of these roles as needed. And what’s even more beautiful is the realization that we all, in one way or another, embody different archetypes at different times. It’s a reminder that we are constantly in motion, always changing, always learning. To live intentionally is to accept the beauty of the fluidity in all of us, the constant play between who we were, who we are, and who we are becoming.

An intentional community is just that, intentional. It’s a group of people choosing to live with purpose. Each community is unique, shaped by the values and goals of its members. Some communities live in shared spaces or cohousing, while others, like the one we are living in, have separate homes. Community living has deep roots in history, from tribes to the rise of communes in the hippie movement. The idea has always been about finding ways to live together in more meaningful, supportive, and intentional ways. If you’re curious about the diversity of intentional communities today, the Foundation for Intentional Community is a great place to explore the many forms these communities.

I’ve learned through this experience that self sufficiency isn’t just about having skills, (luckily my husband has plenty of those) but it’s about trusting yourself and finding a way to make it happen. I’ve learned that slowing down isn’t the same as stopping. I’ve also learned that community takes work. It’s not utopia, and it’s not instant gratification. It’s not the easy way out. It takes effort, and a willingness to show up. But when it works, when people choose to come together, bringing their own strengths and skills, it’s magic.

What im coming to see is that community is a mirror, reflecting not just others, but ourselves. Research in psychology often points to this ~ our interactions with others reveal our own conditioning, biases, and areas for growth. It shows us our reactions, our assumptions, the parts of us asking for understanding and change. It’s an invitation to look deeper, to question, to EVOLVE.