Norway: Day 3

June 23

Today we just hung out in Vidaråsen and enjoyed village life. Vidaråsen is a Camphill community, in which the entire village is structured to support adults with developmental delays and mental disabilities. And it really is a village: there are more than a dozen houses, a store, a home for seniors, a community hall, chapel, and countless outbuildings. At least a hundred people live here. On paper about half are identified as 'villagers' (those with the disabilities) while the other half are 'co-workers' (those providing the care and assistance). But in practice, the distinction is not nearly so clear, and according to those who have lived in a Camphill community some time, the distinction grows fuzzier as you get to know them better.

Most Camphill communities were developed with the ideal of providing meaningful, self-sufficiency work for all. Most include a farm plus workshops in which community members process the food and do a variety of handicrafts. Whatever is not consumed by the village is sold in the community store.

So after a leisurely breakfast (Rhia & Eivind are on holidays and so don't have to get up early to get villagers ready for the day) we went down to the barn to see the new calf & watch the cows getting milked. We visited the weavery workshop where Rhia assists during the week; watched the weaving projects underway & stayed for coffee break. We picked our salad ingredients fresh from the garden. After lunch we went for a long walk to a little lake (not yet warm enough to swim, not for me anyway!) Later there was a big picnic-barbeque to celebrate midsummer but by then we were too pooped to participate.

I have been acquainted with the Camphill movement for more than 30 years because Richard's sister has worked & lived in a Canadian Camphill community since the mid-70's. Village life sounds seductively idyllic & in some ways it is. It's interesting to hear the perspective of Rhia & the other young co-workers sharing tea around the table. They like the community, like the work for the most part, & love being with the villagers. But many of them long for more privacy & autonomy than the traditional Camphill lifestyle affords & they are more skeptical of the anthroposophical ideals that underlie village life. Why no TV, no microwave oven, no wireless internet? Some of the rules seem arbitrary and the decisions not consultative enough. The agricultural activity feels like an add-on in this post-agrarian world.

Still, they appreciate the opportunity to live & work in what has got to be one of the most interesting communities around. To keep the young co-workers coming Camphill will no doubt have to change a great deal over the next 10 years but for now, on a sunny Norwegian holiday it's hard to get too worked up about the issues.