Today I’m writing about the journey to our new home, which has been a huge move for us. For more background to one of the main reasons why we moved, please read about my/our environmental sensitivities in this blog section. (No amount of gadgets, strategies, or general good supplements are sufficient for the level of management needed long-term for this “bucket”.)
(Note: Our website is primarily about homeschooling but there are other people who read some blogs because of our EMF story and this piece is more so written for their sake.)
Within our family, I am the most sensitive to electromagnetic frequencies (RF/microwave cell radiation, electrical fiel
ds, magnetic fields) and would be considered within the 3% of our Canadian population that experiences symptoms more severely than the average person. To effectively manage this level of EMF sensitivities, means some limitations depending on the living environment (i.e. home) and community. I have needed to “isolate” on our property except for infrequent times occasionally off of it for the past couple of years and you can imagine a little of what that is like now that covid-19 has come into world history. Yes, I could heal from exposures/environmental injuries when I’d recover afterwards but my tolerance levels towards manmade frequencies and cleaners continued, as expected in our specific situation, to worsen. (Please read my downloadable brochure from 2019 if you haven’t done so already (just click the graphic for the pdf). It really helps to provide some understanding.)
For us, we couldn’t just stay where we were and accept a life of weakening health, isolation, or ignore symptoms and live carelessly when what we were dealing with is more so preventable AND when God has called His people to minister to others in community, person-to-person. Where could we go to recover and where could we go to serve? God would have a home and community in mind. We needed to have Him direct those steps for “where next” and we are delighted to say He has! 😊
Margaree Valley, Nova Scotia is a very small community, a bit south of the Cape Breton Highlands (a part of the Appalachian Mountain range). Cell signals are nil here in a number of places. This house is smaller (but still a reasonable size for our family size), has a longer driveway, lots of natural light, and fewer electrical fields (EF). EMF experts (e.g. professional engineers) strongly believe that the EF levels which are here can be lowered even more so that they reach a super-good level for people sensitive to electricity. The pastors from church in Margaree Valley and Inverness have dropped off food/groceries for during our mandatory self-isolation period and we look forward to getting to know more of the people and area soon. This is our new home. 😊
A Biblical Perspective on Preventable Health Issues
According to God’s wise direction for us, shown in such Bible verses as 1 Corinthians 6:19-20, Christians are to try to care for one’s body, to keep a goal of prevent damaging and symptoms, while acknowledging God’s sovereignty in what He allows us to suffer. To put this simply is that we honour God when we take good care of what God has given us. Thus, the attitude of “don’t care anymore and just live recklessly” isn’t one we should comply with. I couldn’t just participate regularly in our old community and ignore the consequences which such actions caused. I chose instead to limit those outings in order to retain a measure of ability to be a wife/mom at home and take the best care I could for my own health. (The article by Hope Bolinger at this link (which takes you outside of our website) expands on why the YOLO (a.k.a. “you live only once” [and do whatever you like regardless of the results]) philosophy isn’t a good one.)
I wrote the following comments in Science, Health, and Technology Level B, p. 239 – 243 (from Appendix B teaching notes, 2nd edition, Bible verses quoted from the New King James translation):
…We are not to harm our bodies with evil/sinful choices but rather take good care of it. We should respect God and reject harmful things:
“Do not be wise in your own eyes; Fear the LORD and depart from evil. It will be health to your flesh, and strength to your bones.” Proverbs 3:7-8
…To live wisely, Christians should not be under the harmful influence/control of something which foolishly changes the way we talk, walk, and think but rather under the direction of the Holy Spirit:
“See then that you walk circumspectly, not as fools but as wise, redeeming the time, because the days are evil. Therefore do not be unwise, but understand what the will of the Lord is.” Ephesians 5:15-17
…Things other than drugs can become addictive [added note here: such as a habit of isolation]. But choosing something that is addictive is a very poor choice because it makes you a slave. 1 Corinthians 6:12 says “All things are lawful for me,” but not all things are helpful. “All things are lawful for me,” but I will not be enslaved by anything.” And God’s plan for our lives is not that we should be enslaved to anything other than to be servants of His. When we serve Him out of love and a grateful heart for all He has done for us, this is the best way to live in any circumstance, sick or healthy.
…God promises He will provide me a godly option to each temptation: “No temptation has overtaken you except such as is common to man; but God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will also make the way of escape, that you may be able to bear it.” 1 Corinthians 10:13.
Proverbs says that “the prudent/wise see danger and take refuge; but the simple/foolish keep going and suffer for it.” (22:3)
… “Therefore let those who suffer according to the will of God commit their souls to Him in doing good, as to a faithful Creator.” 1 Peter 4:19 God is faithful. He can do anything – to heal me or not – but if He does, He’ll use something that He’ll agree with. I truly believe that God only offers what is good for us. The bad stuff [suggested remedies] might look promising and good but in reality, in the end, it will be harmful. 2 Peter 2:19 “They promise them freedom, but they themselves are slaves of corruption. For whatever overcomes a person, to that he is enslaved.”
(end of quote)
Isolation versus God’s Design
Never think that God’s desire for a human being is to live a life of seclusion! Managing environmental sensitivities is one of the reasons that a growing number of people need to retreat for periods of time from society but if this is your situation, don’t think that isolation from everyone must now be your lot for the rest of your life! Don’t put your trust in this lie. Instead, keep pursuing what is true, even though that can be hard to resist isolation and hard to accept change. God can and will strengthen you and give you the courage you need to continue forward if you trust Him! God tell us the TRUTH in the Bible and nothing ever, ever indicates that God wants people to withdraw from society long-term. Yes, a short-term, contagious-related absence is wise. (Likewise, is how I managed life in our old community.) But to hide alone and become property-bound for long-term (which is what some people with severe EMF do), is not. Even people who acted with a serious error in judgment had a place to go to in order to live in a community of other people – God told His people to set up “cities of refuge”. The God I serve remains a God of love and leads people into community, not away from.
In the Bible, we learn that God created humans with companionship and fellowship with other humans in mind. Any periods of isolation, for example as mentioned above, due to contagious disease, is either temporary/not designed to be long-term, and/or the people are isolating together (which means they might share in the disease but still have the blessing of communicating in-person with one another, for example, a group of lepers).
Furthermore, in the Book of Hebrews, written to believers in the Lord Jesus, God encourages His people to meet together “more and more” as we sense that the time of the return of Jesus Christ is coming closer. (To learn more about that topic, you can click here to listen to a sermon by my dad on our website entitled “The Rapture of the Church”.)
And all throughout the Bible, we can read, over and over, that God personally cares, provides in love, has a purpose for Christians which includes being active in being with other people for friendship (mutual encouragement) and fellowship (e.g. as workers together with Christ). This is HIS design and this is what HE wants to provide.
Isolation can breed fatigue and depression, some of common results of poorly-managed EMF sensitivities. (For example, when people sleep in better environments, sensitivities are better managed because cell growth/healing is better supported and the normal sleeping pattern doesn’t get as much interference.) Isolation needs to be limited, not embraced, as a new lifestyle. People suffering with EMF sensitivities need to seek ways to still interact with other people, although that doesn’t necessarily mean having to remain in a more-populated area. Smaller communities can provide excellent person-to-person communication without as many cell towers to deal with for one’s own safety/management of environmental injury. We could not serve other people much anymore in our former community and that was a strong indicator that God was leading us elsewhere. If you have the freedom to find something that fits your God-ordained abilities better, why not?! Is it too selfish to think about moving away from extended family and friends for this reason? I don’t think so. (Plus, in 1 Corinthians 7:21, Paul told bondservants that if they had the opportunity to gain freedom, to go for it.)
The Process and Answers
After realizing that EMF (e.g. from wifi, smart meter, cell phones, cell towers) was the cause behind my burning/peeling eyes and face and some other symptoms, and that higher electrical fields had been causing some other preventable symptoms, we prayerfully took our concerns to God.
(The higher electrical fields (EF) were within ESA standards after we fixed the lack of household grounding but the level was still too high for EMF hyper-sensitive people to live without symptoms and there was nothing further we could do and nothing the utility company would do at that location because it was well within the government standards. Just like many people can tolerate living in a city but some people who are sensitive to smog have to move where the air is cleaner, we were the ones who needed to make the move to go elsewhere. We have experienced the vivid difference of lower electricity environments and yes, some of us can actually notice that – sounds strange but it’s true. But that confirmed for us that improvement was indeed a possibility. I have likely lived with hyper-sensitivity to EF for 25+ years since sleep/movement disorders associated with those sorts of levels (which I was diagnosed with way back then) have improved or worsened depending on my home environment over the years – for example, worse in areas close to high voltage lines, worse in an old home with wiring errors).)
We asked that if God wanted us to remain living in the community where we were, that He would provide a way we could do that. And if that if He wanted us to go elsewhere, that HE would lead us and provide for all things needed to do that. It became very apparent that He wanted us to move, despite this situation being an experience of ups and downs – disappointments, encouragement, waiting, etc..
Like the Psalmist, this was one of our prayers…
God is sometimes in Scripture referred metaphorically as “the Rock” of those who put their trust in Him. And our God was the only One Who could see everywhere and know everything. We could not find this next home on our own. And God is much higher than any “online search tool” – these things can help give some information but only God could help us see things fit together.
Here are some “tidbits” involved in choosing our next home…
1. We initially considered moving within our home province, to a location with less electricity. We wanted to continue to help my parents too. However, things like cost of housing for large families like ours, smart meter requirements if remaining on-grid, and the eager plan of governments to greatly increase cell towers in Ontario communities, even the smaller communities where we were, deterred the idea of such a move and my parents chose to move into a seniors’ facility to be near other family.
2. A couple of years ago when we were considering “where” to live for a location with fewer cell towers, etc., Cape Breton Island was suggested to us and, at first, we were only mildly interested. But as we learned more about it, God led us more and more towards this beautiful area of Canada!
3. We had previously noticed the house we eventually bought online but while it looked interesting, we easily cast the idea aside, thinking that it wouldn’t have an internet connection available for us to work from home and that it could be quite far from a daughter already living in Nova Scotia. (Last year, Rob was given the approval to work full-time from home for the same company he’s been employed with for many years.)
4. A different house we noticed in Cape Breton was interesting enough that Rob took a trip last year to see the Island, meet with a couple of pastors (e.g. to hear about the spiritual aspects of life there), etc.. (That house was sold shortly after his trip but by then we had realized it wasn’t for us.) However, we remained very much aware that God was calling our family towards living somewhere in Cape Breton, which has a very very low percentage of people who are Bible-believing Christians (source) and who can find a church in their community, even though we kept looking at the mainland as well for potential housing.
5. With covid-19 protocols, Rob couldn’t just go over there to see housing. HOWEVER, our daughter in NS happened to be living with a realtor and his wife, so… they made the trip for us and checked things out. (Our daughter has a set of equipment to test EMF stuff too.) This place has nil or zero cell signal on the property AND we will be able to actually get to a church, post office, and general store without going past ANY cell tower (because those are either away from this tiny community or else down by the highway where the main traffic exists). But yes, high speed internet is available and is wired into the house. Nova Scotia Power also allows the option for NO smart meters (and a technician just came today to make our smart meter “dumb”! 🙂 )
6. About that time, again, unknowingly, the pastor of the church nearby began a short series of messages on the true versus the false gospels, a topic very close to our hearts. We knew that there were children/youth as well in that church and community so that lessened concerns about being too remote. (Our family does actually prefer smaller communities and in my childhood, I remember often only going to cities about twice a year.)
7. We ended up with the blessing of an electrician who is willing to help make some changes here in the coming weeks to lower the EF for us and is a Christian too.
8. In addition to these things, there were a few “extras” that God included in His choice… I love scenery with low mountains but we also didn’t want a steep driveway in the winter. (This driveway is easily biked by children but puts the house further away from hydro lines going down the road.) Although we arrived in Cape Breton in the darkness, we woke the next morning to see mist rising from the gorgeous fall colours of the mountains! Our family has lived in a pine log home for most of our children’s lives but hadn’t really expected to move to one this time. We thought we might have a very long drive to get to a church but it isn’t long. (There are very few evangelical churches of any denomination on Cape Breton Island outside of the Sydney area.)
9. Was everything smooth in this move? No, but many things were. We also dealt with a flat tire on the U-haul truck that needed replacing before we left, a U-haul trailer that needed to be replaced before we left (due to its’ need for repair), dense fog at night for a couple of hours of travel (God provided a slow-moving flashing lights vehicle in front of us for a good part of that section to lead the way), a check engine light that went on for part of the travel, and an unusual delay in the official closing date. We knew we’d be dealing with the effects of the cell towers and high voltage powerlines on the trip and chose a good route to try to minimize that. The border crossing people were great, the meals on the road were nourishing (we took our own – first meal was hard-boiled eggs, buns, cookies, applesauce on the side of a country road), potty stops were scenic (we took our own for that too), no problematic cleaners in our motel rooms, weather absolutely beautiful to unpack in, tasty apples were discovered in the side-yard, and the lost found the right way back! (I read the wrong road sign when directing Rob to find a gas station so we went off the beaten track for a bit. I thought I had seen a gas station sign but instead it was a beer mug symbol for a pub! One of our drivers went down the wrong road – a very bumpy one – for a bit before turning around so we could restart from the parking lot we had stopped in. The other driver (a typically-very-competent-in-the-backwoods guy) went for a long walk but got lost and ended up finding his way across a stream and emerged into the backyard of some new neighbours a couple of kms down the road who were getting ready for church. (Both of our U-haul drivers are long-time Christian friends of our family. They stayed with us during the first few days and it was great to spend that time with them too.)
10. There has been more than one person who have told us that Christians in Cape Breton have been praying for Christians to come to join them in the work that is here. To hear that there is not only a “refuge” to help with a recovery from the EMF injuries that have battered me/us but ALSO a place with an opportunity to help others in reaching people with the real hope that is only found in Jesus Christ – those are the two answers to prayer that God has provided!
“Among the gods there is none like You, O Lord; Nor are there any works like Your works.” Psalm 86:8 (NKJV)
“For You, LORD, are most high above all the earth; You are exalted far above all gods.” Psalm 97:9 (NKJV)
And a final note – if you’re still looking for the “My First Social Studies” curriculum that I had really hoped to finish before we moved, I’m so sorry I was unable to finalize that title at that time. However, I haven’t forgotten and will go back to work on it when I’m able.
Photos:
Shortly before moving… a home office contest photo with Patches and Maple (our goats who remained behind – no, we didn’t take them along in the van), breakfast-time when normal table is full of boxes, tire trouble, piano goes on with help of Mr. H, Miss P has fun with kids and a leaf craft, hydro outage while loading truck and still packing. Not pictured were also Mr. and Mrs. G who helped those days too.
First day of travels…Ontario – Sweet Pea and her camera, Sunflower really liked the travel bag of toys and activities, colours were very pretty as we left our old home area (Muskoka and Algonquin Park) and travelled eastward. Supper was hard-boiled eggs, buns, applesauce, juice/water on side of a country road, then some fog in the dark along the Rideau River area.
Second day of travels…Entering the next province “by the roads less travelled”, crossing the St. Lawrence River, Joy wearing a emf-protection headnet or just the special glasses, road construction and scenery in Quebec.
Third day of travels…to our new home!
New Brunswick – lunch at the side of the road, seeing the big wind turbines and entering Nova Scotia….
Nova Scotia – toll route stop, snack stop in a scenic carpool lot and our drivers, Mr. S. and Mr. G. seeing on the map where we’re heading, passing through a few places, evening sunset brightens the hills of colour, crossing the Canso Causeway by nightfall.
Settling in – rainbows in the mist (sorry, colours were quite faded on the photos), unpacking, walking and playing baseball with our drivers, flowers for Mommy 🙂