Living the dream

There’s something about daily load-shedding and burst water mains that’s driving me to declutter my house as I try to find a lighter way of living. The more I get rid of, the more I feel drawn to a simpler life, but the truth is, I’m afraid. Pulling the plug on the suburbs might sound attractive but I don’t want to be uncomfortable or feel irrelevant or left behind. So when I met Kathleen Abdolaziz and Abby Shalabi and they told me about their off-grid lifestyle at their property, Sakura, just 40 minutes from Cape Town, I was intrigued to see how it works.

Their land is at the end of a sandy track in a fynbos nature reserve and the moment I arrived, I felt an overwhelming desire to kick my shoes off. “Everyone responds that way,” says Kathy, adding: “Take them off — be yourself!”

There’s no grass anywhere, just warm raked sand underfoot, and I think about the grassy suburb I’ve come from and the amount of water it must take to keep it so green. There’s vibey music coming from the house and as I step inside, it feels so open and free that I’m not sure where the inside ends and the outside starts. Abby designed the house herself and describes it as a huge Wendy house with lots of light, space and air. In one corner there’s a fitted pine kitchen with a long table, and in the middle of the room a large fire box with couch cushions and blankets placed all around it. Does it get cold in the winter? “Not at all,” says Kathy. “It’s a small space and heats up quickly.”

Over coffee, Abby told me she previously had a demanding corporate career in Dubai, which left little room for artistic expression. In 2018 she bought these seven raw acres (2.8ha) of land with the intention of creating a spiritual space and establishing a large outdoor gallery as a solo artist. In 2020, she took the leap. She purchased a shipping container; had it delivered, and came to live on the land. She remembers a restless first night, alone in the pitch dark, with the unfamiliar sounds of nature around her, but says: “I knew I had to face my fears or leave, and if I left, my dream would be over before it had begun.”

A central fireplace at Sakura where living is off the grid. (Supplied)

Kathy, tired of the rat race, sold her business in 2021 and swapped city life for off-grid life and hasn’t had a moment of regret since.

I was fascinated by how they manage day-to-day living. I learned that there’s enough underground water here to last them a lifetime. They've set up well points driven by solar energy and they don’t need much power because they have few electrical appliances. They cook with gas and wash their clothes by hand, so only need to power lights, pumps, fridge, work tools and devices. Enviably, they're not, and never have been, connected to Eskom.

Kathy offers the writer a batch of home grown eggs. (Supplied)

Kathy walked me around her vegetable garden where fresh produce is thriving in a mixture of sand and manure. She pulls off a mange tout for me to eat — crunchy, fresh and sweet. A cape gooseberry — sun warmed and bursting with flavour. Rocket — peppery, fragrant and unusually plump. There are young fruit trees, fennel, cannabis, tomatoes, herbs, salad, spinach, potatoes, peppers and chillis set close to olive trees. They have plans to press oil. We stop at the “Hen Palace”, where muscular chickens scratch around a huge area with natural shrubbery. They lay so many eggs that Kathy has plenty to share with friends and neighbours.

From the start, their modus operandi was to create an environment where wildlife could thrive alongside them. The local bee population has increased from one wild hive to seven and with help from a bee expert they've introduced water, shade, bee-friendly plants and have learnt how to harvest a portion of the honey.

As we walk, I see little water troughs. “For the insects,” Kathy tells me. “So they have access to water in this heat.” There are even carefully placed stones, so the little critters don’t drown. Kathy and Abby are the only people I know who actively care for insects — most people Doom them out of existence. They tell me they also leave water on the boundary for snakes, so they don’t need to seek water around the house.

Nothing is wasted. They've cleared the alien Port Jackson trees and turned them into beautiful fencing and firewood, and they’re excited to tell me about their plastic project. They’ve invested in a shredder and a melting machine and are making moulds so they can shred, melt and remould their plastic waste into useful things. They're planning to get schoolchildren out to visit so that they can share their knowledge with the next generation.

Kathy and Abby harvest honey. (Supplied)

Delicious beetroot grown in their organic vegetable garden. (Supplied)

There’s a wooden frame with lots of swings, a huge heart-shaped hessian sack, stuffed with leaves and shaded with cloth and there’s a large shallow pond in the shape of an eye, because, why not? Abby is realising her dream of this huge outside art studio and her sculptures, paintings, themed faces, and creatively recycled materials guide you around the land.

It feels like a little utopia; a cross between MacGregor’s Temenos Retreat and AfrikaBurn. Then I get back to worrying about the practical side of things. What about money? Their expenses are 20% of what they were in the city; they generate income from Airbnb guests and need very little day-to-day money because the land provides. What about insurance? We have nothing of value! Medical aid? Downgraded to a hospital plan. What about getting old? They’ll stay strong because of this healthy lifestyle. For every petty worry I have, they have a fearless response.

Taking a last look around, I asked Abby how she had the vision to set this up; to me, it would seem an overwhelming task.

“You can’t plan it at once,” she said. “You do what you need to do today. Tomorrow you need something else, and you learn how to do that. The place grows organically around us and ultimately, we’re heading towards an independent lifestyle where we know how to do everything ourselves.”

Before I left, Kathy packaged some eggs, lavender soap, a candle, and her homemade toothpaste (which smells amazing) for me.

I drove home with my head buzzing. Their home isn’t uncomfortable, irrelevant or snoozy in any way. Off-grid living feels uplifting, progressive and creative. It feels like a lifestyle to be proud of. Could I do it, I wonder, as I filter into the fast lane on my way back to town?

The next day, while I'm sitting at my desk in my subterranean office, they send me a selfie. Abby is covered in green paint and Kathy is holding a chicken. I find myself feeling envious indeed.

SIDEBAR 1

If you’re thinking of going off grid, here are some things to consider:

Have a positive mindset and be prepared to think outside the box.
Off-grid living is a wonderful reason to create your own rule book. Just because things have been done one way for a long time, doesn’t mean it’s the only way.
Start thinking about living with less — do you really need that hairdryer?
You'll need to implement an energy system such as solar, which can grow over time.
Start sourcing earth-friendly products so you can recycle greywater back to the soil.
Look at your natural materials and think about how you can repurpose them — there's no waste in an off-grid lifestyle.
Start a vegetable garden and find a contact for manure.
Going off grid doesn’t mean opting out of life, you can still go to the theatre, cinema, yoga, supermarkets and coffee shops — it just means your own footprint on the earth is lighter.
Take it one day at a time. You are building a lifestyle which won’t happen in a week — it’s a journey that builds over time.
If you want to know more, you can visit Abby and Kathy and see how they do it. They love to share their experience and grow awareness of a self-sufficient lifestyle. You can contact them via: sakura-getaway.com

SIDEBAR 2

Kathy’s Toothpaste Recipe