Ep 36: From burn-out to community nourishment with Andre Chow

Making big decisions can be challenging, and when our body screams NO, we don’t really have a choice. In that instant, we are faced with survival or collapse and we must face ourselves and the situations as they are.

“When you work in the big system, everything does come down to a dollar and a cent.

And, you know,

I guess treating people differently because everything’s equated down to dollars and cents ended up just not agreeing with me.”

That’s what happened to Andre Chow, when he hit a wall following a successful career in Medical Technology, and decided to leave it all. At the time he didn’t know what would follow, but as it happens, something very different was waiting for him.

He and his partner ended up in the Peak District, right alongside Derwent Reservoir, where he really started his healing and connecting to nature. It was here, that life presented it’s next adventure for them. One day after Thanksgiving they were on a walk when they were warmly greeted by their neighbours Abe and Pippa.

“Stumbling into their home the next day and just being enveloped by the most incredible warmth and welcome and feeling of generosity and abundance and love and then just being like, wow, I cannot remember the last time I felt like this or been welcomed like this.”

It was this essence which carried them through to the creation of Open House, a community gathering space in Hathersage.

Andre shares his experiences, beliefs with Carmen Rendell, and his very personal journey of creating this beautiful new home-from-home, which we believe is needed more and more in our towns and villages. Spaces for us to come together, to feel that warm welcome whoever you are, to support local community whole-being.

We hope you enjoy listening.

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