My (mis)adventures at the Commune

I’m writing this post from the Super 8 in Waynesboro, VA. It will be a two-part post, mostly because I have to be out by 11! :-)

I left West Virginia on Saturday and drove through part of the Appalachian Mountains (drop-dead gorgeous) on my way to Virginia. One of the adventures along this quirky vision quest was to visit intentional communities, aka: communes. The idea of getting back to nature, living in harmony with the earth, in an egalitarian society which embraces artists and misfits alike.

Yes! That’s what I’m talkin’ about. I could hardly wait to get there and meet everyone! I was so grateful they had, through email correspondence, invited me out for an extended stay. It was (I thought) why I drove 1,600 miles.

The community was deep in the woods, as you would expect a commune to be. No one seemed to be around when I first arrived, but finally I found a member who gave me and another visitor a tour of the land and gardens. I met some darling little pigs. I scratched the fuzzy head of a young cow, who reminded me of dogs I’ve had: sweet, affectionate, nuzzling in for more.

I learned about composting toilets. Where to pee and where to poo, and what to do with your toilet paper. Practical matters which are never discussed in regular society, since our excrement is conveniently flushed into oblivion. We never see the pigs we eat either, or the chickens or the cows headed for slaughter. My theory is if we did there would be a lot less waste and perhaps a little more responsibility about the resources we consume.

I wanted to learn about all of this and more, wanted to discover community living in a ‘free’ society. Who knew things would unravel so quickly? That I would commit several faux pas. That I would wind up sleeping in my car, as temps dropped into the 30’s and frost collected on the windows. I awoke before dawn, teeth chattering, waiting for the sun to peek over the horizon just enough so I could see to find my way out of the woods…

Leaving at the break of dawn (the only picture I took during my misadventures at the commune)

My (unintentional) blunders and improprieties will be discussed in the next post. Meanwhile, here I am at the Super 8 in Waynesboro. Nice people. Last night I stared at my Road Atlas wondering what the heck I was gonna do now that plans have suddenly changed. Well, I said to myself, you’ve never seen Mississippi….

So off I go, heading south. Next stop: Tennessee.

I will admit, I’m a little bummed…. but I guess it’s true what they say about journeys. It’s never really about the destination. In the words of Lao Tzu:

A good traveler has no fixed plans, and is not intent on arriving.