Town and Country

Just wondering how many of us live in town and how many live in the country and the benefits and also downsides of each.

Where I live is town, I grew up in town. I had never really been to the countryside and lived there but my town USED to be a country town. Our town was quite close to the rural area but it was mostly orchard and vineyard land before got subdivided into suburban plots.
I don't live right in the city, but thats where all the big business is.
In our town, there is shopping mall, main street, council buildings, civic centre. But its been run down a lot lately and also some crimes been happening there. However I still think its friendly place to live.

There are lots of different churches.

I went wwwoofing last year and got to taste a bit of the country lifestyle. I enjoyed it even though some of it was hard work! It's a fair way to drive though and you absolutely need wheels. Also people more friendly and less suspicious I suppose, and less stressed out about life. But can be isolated.
 
I grew up in town.
My places of work were always in major towns,
My places of residence have migrated out to the country.
I now live about 10 miles from Fredericksburg, Virginia. Semi rural, but close enough to town for convenient access to town services.

As far as isolation, I felt more isolated when I was living in a dense townhouse community than I do out in the countryside. I saw my neighbors, and we would wave or pass a little time of day, but if I needed a friend, I would call someone from church or my office. Now that I am out in the sticks, I am more involved with those I meet.

This got me thinking about who is my neighbor. I have come to the understanding that my neighbor that I am to love is whomever whit which I interact.
 
I suppose Jesus had a slightly different definition of a neighbour than what we normally think - not just those living next to us. He said those with whom we show compassion.

I think if had the means, would love to live in the countryside, but it is quite a different way of life from the convenience of the city. It would also depend on what kind of farming - horticulture or agriculture you were doing or whether you maybe could have a 'lifestyle block' caring for so much land takes up all of your time.

Suburbia is the best of both worlds I think, if you have a sizeable section but nowadays it is becoming more and more expensive to buy a decent section. Jesus grew up in Galillee which was rural and I think he wasn't really used to how people lived and behaved in the city which must have been what Jerusalem was at the time, a great big city bustling with people. He needed to get away often, going up to the mountain to pray. Also I think he liked going to gardens - his last night on earth he went to Gesthemane to pray.

I think its really important that towns have parks and gardens. So people can be connected to nature and God's creation.
 
Hmm..two votes for country.

I suppose distinction between town and country and also city neeeds to be made. Cos there are country towns.

I read somewhere that to be a city, it needs to have a cathedral.
I dont know about that, these days, it seems to be a city, you need an international airport.
 
I went and visited a farm on the weekend, maybe its if you live in the country, more people go out of their way to visit you than vice versa. In town, since you go out see and meet people everyday, you kind of crave privacy back in your own place.
 
The pro for town is shops and community, the pro for the country is fresh air and alone time. Its like going into a room and listening to the waves and relaxing. There are cons for both too. Con for town is you are never alone, society is more control over lifestyle, con for country would be always alone, that can make it harder to form relationships. What is better for you totally depends on personality, and how you feel about people in general.
 
Since my post (#2 above), I have moved to a much more rural area. I am about 15 miles out of Oakland Md. which has a reported population of 1,825 in a county of under 30,000.

There are some drawbacks to rural living vs urban living:

While in town and close to town is wired for internet, No cable comes close to my home and I must connect thru cellular hotspot.

I have to drive about 90 minutes to get to a major shopping area.

I note that in urban areas, people are more used to meeting and dealing with people from a variety of locations and backgrounds while rural areas are much more insular. This is neither better nor worse but is different.

There are many churches, everything from a home that holds services to fairly large congregations (one local church normally holds three services on Sunday morning (prior to covid). They are building a new larger building and will likely cut down to two services.

Services are more limited and with fewer choices. General maintenance work (plumbers, electricians, handymen) takes a long time to accomplish, and for small jobs, they do not seem to want to make schedules. You are placed on a list, when they get to your name they call, if you can’t have then come then or the next day, you are out of luck.

In the winter, it can be several days following a snow before the road past my house gets plowed.

The one thing I miss most is the variety of community volunteer opportunities of urban areas. I have applied to volunteer at the local hospital and a few other local organizations but none have shown interest. My church has some possibilities but not really a good fit given my circumstances.
 
I live in a small city close to national park

I have lived inland in a major city and prefer both so I moved here.

There were more jobs where I used to live and more nightlife.
There is more stargazing and clean beaches and clean air but less jobs and nightlife. Lots of students live here short term for the uni, and I think more people will move in because they can work from home and houses are a bit cheaper than the bigger cities.
we will see.8ED7898C-BDB1-4F72-AF8F-744D854B9771.jpeg
 
I don't know why people put a big store on a city having a nightlife...after working all day most people it seems to me prefer to catch up on sleep.

In the country you would be up at 4am anyway (night before dawn) to milk the cows. You definitely have to be a bit more resourceful to live out in the country. In the city there's always help available, the only problem is those new to the city and don't know where to go at first, will more likely run into problems. It can be a bit of a maze navigating it too.
 
Having grown up in the middle of no-where, no buses or trains, and also having lived in big cities, London, Chicago, Sydney, I think I now have the best of both worlds, living in a small town. I have access to shops etc, but can also escape, in minutes, to the beach.
 
I wonder if there's an optimum size for any given area, maybe a 'critical mass' not so small that everyone grows up really isolated, and not so big that it's overwhelming.

People extol the virtues of small towns, but I have also heard that a town where everyone knows your business all the time can be stifling.

I'm glad I can get to the shops, but I don't need to travel all the way across town to get to any, on the other hand, having 4 of the same warehouses in one area and six petrol stations on one strip of road is a bit overkill.
 
I don’t like too much countryside, I prefer the big cities, like London. There’s just something about those high rise buildings and manic streets that make me excited. Mixed with Culture, and history, and Busy bustling markets are my thing.

of course, I would give my left leg for a weekend in Sydney, Chicago and most certainly Istanbul 🙏
 
In my small town, a lot of people commute to London during the day. It was interesting during lockdown (in the queues for the shops), to meet people that I didn't ordinarily see during the week. I had a lot of interesting conversations while waiting, with some very interesting people. Especially older people, who were the most chatty, and often the most funny. It made me realise that a sense of community has been lost in our modern world, and that's sad.
 
You make a good point annie..

when I moved to wales( I work in a tiny village) I was waiting for the bus to go home one morning... and a lady passed me and said “good Morning”
I was taken aback as I realised just how locked in our own world we are in Manchester. Everyone just goes about their day busy busy busy, and I’m used to that kind of thing.
But now I’ve had a few years here, I have mellowed out a bit and greet everyone amply.
I still crave the big cities, but at least I’ve been dosed with a bit of homely sauce.
 
It's usually if you walk past someone on your way to work or school you say good morning but in a city where you walk past hundreds of people it would just take forever to say good morning to everyone you see, and its true people are much busier.

Sometimes I have to stop and make the effort to be the first to greet others.

Do people say good night as well?
I grew up in a household when there was never any goodnight ritual, but I know some mothers do say goodnight to their children every single night AND sing a lullaby and read a story in bed.

I wish I had that. Never had a good morning thing either..when I tried to do it mum would just say 'what are you doing up so early'. Some people are just grumps in the morning and not in the mood to greet anyone!

Some teachers make the effort and get their children to chant 'good morning' 'good afternoon' or 'Thank you' in their library visits, which I think is nice. Courtesy does go a long way.

the govt here has 'Be Kind' as a slogan for these covid-19 times.
 
Some people make eye contact, some people don't. But I think that it never hurts (in a small town, not a city) to say hello, or good morning etc.

Maybe I'm just old LOL.
 
It's usually if you walk past someone on your way to work or school you say good morning but in a city where you walk past hundreds of people it would just take forever to say good morning to everyone you see, and its true people are much busier.

Sometimes I have to stop and make the effort to be the first to greet others.

Do people say good night as well?
I grew up in a household when there was never any goodnight ritual, but I know some mothers do say goodnight to their children every single night AND sing a lullaby and read a story in bed.

I wish I had that. Never had a good morning thing either..when I tried to do it mum would just say 'what are you doing up so early'. Some people are just grumps in the morning and not in the mood to greet anyone!

Some teachers make the effort and get their children to chant 'good morning' 'good afternoon' or 'Thank you' in their library visits, which I think is nice. Courtesy does go a long way.

the govt here has 'Be Kind' as a slogan for these covid-19 times.
I had a goodnight ritual with my 2 boys when they were little. Now I'm the one who goes to bed before them. Sometimes I hear a 'goodnight mum', but mostly I'm asleep before that happens.
 
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