Rebuilding Our Village

What do you do when the community you spent years crafting falls apart? As we pick up the pieces wrought by the war that has been our experience with the pandemic, Long COVID, and our community's response to both, we assess where and how things went wrong and how we might begin to rebuild. Good thing Amy's done lots of research on these topics - and that there's a whole new generation doing things differently that we can learn from!

REBUILDING OUR VILLAGE

When I interviewed childfree adults for my ⁠book⁠, I learned that many nonparents form intentional communities around which they build their lives. Lance and I are no different. We settled in Bangor, Maine intending to stay here as we age. Eventually, we presumed, we’d die here.

Over the years, our local network grew thanks to considered, intentional effort. We put real blood, sweat, tears, love, and resources into this wickedly wacky, absolutely lovable little city these past couple of decades. As a result, we’ve moved past the daily reminders that we are “from away” to feeling fully embraced. Never have I loved a place more deeply. Never have I felt more HOME.

Continues at ⁠https://amyblackstonephd.substack.com/p/rebuilding-our-village⁠

CITED IN THIS EPISODE

1. Blackstone, Amy. ⁠Childfree by Choice⁠: The Movement Redefining Family and Creating a New Age of Independence. New York: Dutton.
2. Gardner, Susan K. and Amy Blackstone. 2015, 2023. “Confronting Faculty Incivility and Mobbing,” in ⁠Disrupting the Culture of Silence⁠: Confronting Gender Inequality and Making Change in Higher Education, edited by Kris De Welde and Andi Stepnick. New York: Routledge.
3. Johns Hopkins University: ⁠Gen Z In The Workplace⁠
4. Stanford University: ⁠8 ways Gen Z will change the workforce⁠
5. West, Kath. 1991, 1997. ⁠Families We Choose⁠: Lesbians, Gays, Kinship. New York: Columbia University Press.
6. Amy's 2019 NYT OpEd: ⁠Grow Old Like the Golden Girls⁠