Why I Am Moving to Montenegro

It is a huge step, there is no doubt about it. Dad has put out a video in our family Facebook group on why our family is leaving Australia and heading to Montenegro. I echo what is in that video. However, I do have my own personal reasons as to why I am heading over there, and I thought it would be good to share those with you here.

Some of you may know that, from 2016-2019, I was ill with a combination of severe CFS/ME, Fibromyalgia, and POTS. When I began recovery in 2019, I had to wrestle with a sense of loss of the life that had been before I was ill, and the loss of the life I thought I would have. As Tolkien writes in Return of the King, “How do you pick up the threads of an old life? How do you go on when in your heart you begin to understand… that there is no going back? There are some things that time cannot mend.”

I began to feel, like Bilbo Baggins, that I needed to go on an extended holiday. For me, I would liked that to have meant travelling overseas as I love travelling and it had been many years since I had been overseas. But then Covid happened and travelling became almost impossible. So I instead moved to a house in Mitcham and tried to get settled there.

But settling refused to happen and I was unable to put down roots there. I ended up moving back home.

I remember when I first heard about Montenegro. Dad made a comment to me one day about how there were few evangelical Christians in Montenegro and how his friend saw great need there, need for the gospel and need for people to help reach Montenegrins. My internal response was, “I’ll go! I want to go to Montenegro!” This was before Monte was even on the cards for our family.

When our family began thinking about moving, I was definitely a supporter and began to research the best countries to travel to. When I drew up a pro’s and con’s list for moving to Monte, the pro’s list far outlisted the con’s.

So, why am I going?

I am going for the adventure. When I read Lord of the Rings back in 2019, I began to feel again a longing for adventure and life, something I had lost amid the grief and depression of my post-illness. Montenegro is also a gateway to Europe. The Europe I feel drawn to and want to explore. And the UK where my family’s roots are.

I am going because I need a fresh start. I have been through a lot- chronic physical illness, then Covid, then mental illness because of what I’ve been through. Things haven’t been working out for me in Melbourne and I have felt increasingly unsettled here. I realised that, though it has given me so much, and though there are people I love here, it isn’t where I want to be long term. Dad says that if something isn’t working for you, then you need to change something. Well, things haven’t been working for me so I am going to change something, by going to Monte. I have always wanted to go to Europe. I love the history and the culture. I have the opportunity in front of me. So why not take it? What would happen if I don’t?

I am going because the cost of living is cheaper than in Melbourne. Melbourne is becoming increasingly expensive to live in, with inflation happening and incomes no longer keeping up with the cost of living. Montenegro is appealing to me because I can rent a small apartment there for a much more affordable price then I can in Melbourne.

I am going because I want to be a blessing. While I am not going as a missionary, I do have a heart for people and want to be a blessing wherever I am. Whether that is working with people with disabilities as a support worker, or it is compiling a much needed history of Montenegro, I long to be a blessing and contribute something worthwhile to the people and communities there. I have opportunities to work over there, whether teaching English or freelance writing, or disability support work, my goal is to have multiple streams of income open. There is nothing set in stone, but I may also have the chance to pursue my dream as an archaeologist over there, something that I cannot do here in Australia.

Finally, I don’t want to live in and be held back by fear. I want to try it. It might not work out, it is true. It could all fall apart and be a huge disaster. But things could also go right. It could also prove to be one of the best decisions I could have made for my life. I won’t know unless I step out and try it.

And, you know, I can always come home.

So, that is why I am moving to Montenegro.