I Bought An Abandoned General Store: The Backstory

A look at what led me here and my future plans for the homestead

“Life is either a daring adventure or nothing at all.” – Helen Keller

Where to begin? As I stare out my window watching snowflakes flurry to the ground, in supposedly one of the biggest snowstorms Virginia has had in my lifetime, I feel it’s time to share the backstory of my ‘abandoned farmstead’ journey. What led me here? Why did I choose this lifestyle? What are my plans?

I’ve wanted to be a homeowner since I was 18 (I’m 31 now). I know I’m not alone in that, but I wanted it more than anything else. I never dreamt about wedding dresses and throwing bouquets. I never dreamt about the day I would become a mother (although I would love to be one someday). I never dreamt about being swept off my feet by Prince Charming (although, again, I’m not opposed to it). No, these dreams are sweet and lovely, but they weren’t mine. I dreamt about living, working and maintaining a piece of land I could call my own.

In my early twenties, I used to scroll Pinterest and Tumblr for hours, dreaming about growing a garden in the backyard of some small, off-grid shack sheltered underneath the canopies of the California redwood trees. I would peruse images of backyards with laundry hanging out to dry and chickens roaming around, lemon trees in the distance.