From Business Insider · Elle Duffy · · 1m 50s
City life to island life: why I'm staying
A broadcast journalist swapped Glasgow for a remote Scottish island with 50 people, and two years later, she's not looking back.
In brief
A broadcast journalist swapped Glasgow for a remote Scottish island with 50 people, and two years later, she's not looking back. Moving to an isolated community forces you to slow down and build genuine connections, which can matter more than urban convenience. Originally reported by Business Insider.
From Glasgow to Rum
A broadcast journalist working in Glasgow's 650,000-person city saw the Isle of Rum on a work assignment and couldn't shake the feeling. When a job opportunity came up running the island's hostel, she and her husband made the leap.
“I returned home with a Rum-shaped hole in my heart.”
Weather controls everything
On Rum, ferries stop running when wind picks up, cutting off the island for days. Food deliveries, doctor visits, and running the hostel all depend on whether the ferry operates that day.
“A strong gust of wind in the wrong direction can make the ferries stop running, leaving us cut off from the mainland for days at a time.”
Learning to slow down
The couple stocked cupboards with teabags for months before their first winter. They learned that planning only goes so far, and flexibility became essential to surviving island life.
“With time, we figured out how to slow down and grow more flexible.”
One-mile village, instant community
Kinloch village stretches just one mile and holds the only shop, school, and homes. The entire island showed up to help unload their moving van, and daily face-to-face contact made friendship natural.
“The entire island turned up to help us unload our moving van in the two short hours between ferries.”
First baby in years
The couple had their son Cailean almost exactly one year after arriving on Rum. It was the first baby born on the island in several years, making the birth feel special to the tight-knit community.
“When I became pregnant a few months after moving, and gave birth to our son, Cailean, almost a year to the day since we stepped off the ferry, it felt special.”
Island life has real downsides
Brutal weather and lack of on-island healthcare create genuine challenges. The author misses the spontaneity of city living, but not the constant rush.
“The weather can be brutal, and not having on-island healthcare can be inconvenient.”
Gave more than it took
Two years in, the author thought moving meant sacrifice. Instead, the island gave her genuine community, a slower pace, and a place to raise her family that she never wants to leave.
“Two years ago, I thought moving to Rum meant giving things up. Really, though, this Scottish island has given more to me than I ever imagined it could.”
The big picture
Moving to an isolated community forces you to slow down and build genuine connections, which can matter more than urban convenience.
