Coming Home to the Island
In March of this year (2023) our little family packed up everything we owned into a single removal van and made the 300-mile journey north… across The Minch… back to our spiritual home, the Isle of Lewis.
To say it was plain sailing would be a lie. It was physically exhausting and, emotionally, one of the biggest rollercoasters of my life. I’ve moved many times before, and I always found it fairly easy, but this time was different. Moving with a toddler, leaving behind family and friends, navigating a snowstorm, and then, just weeks after arriving… our little one chipped her front tooth, it all had me questioning if we had made the right decision.
For over a year and a half, I had spoken about coming back to the island. But when it actually happened, perhaps faster than I had mentally prepared for, I found myself caught in the bittersweet reality of it all. I worried that I was taking my daughter away from the life she had known, but deep down, I knew I was moving her towards something special:
Towards a childhood rooted in nature and freedom.
Towards a slower, more intentional way of life.
Towards a place where she could remain a child for as long as possible, untouched by the rush of the modern world.
When the initial stress of moving and the lingering pressures of big-town, mainland life began to fade, something shifted. For the first time in almost two years, I felt like I could breathe again.
“I need solitude. I need space. I need air. I need the empty fields round me; and my legs pounding along roads; and sleep; and animal existence.” Virginia Woolf
This is how I need to exist in the world. And this is how I thrive, creatively and emotionally… here in Lewis.
Our Rainbow Cottage
Of course, it hasn’t been all slow living. When we arrived, our home needed a lot of work. Almost all of it is done now though, thanks to my own hand, the walls are a little uneven, and the imperfections are plenty! Our garden, compared to our mainland one, feels like a football field, and it will take time to shape it into what we want. But we’re taking things slow, settling into life in our little rainbow cottage, perched on the edge of a croft, overlooking The Minch.
I’m excited to share more of our island life here, for anyone willing to read my ramblings. But more than that, I hope to inspire others who feel the pull towards a simpler life. If you’ve ever longed to step away from the noise of big-city living, to create a life with more peace and intention, I hope this space gives you a little encouragement to take the leap.
With love from our Rainbow Cottage | Lesley-Anne
