When my son was 1.5 y.o., I joined the majority of Russian community in NYC and rented a “dacha” in Catskills for a summer.
“Dachas” are cottages in a small community of summer residents, located in rural areas, often by a lake.
The cottages offer minimal amenities. “Dachniki” must bring with them bedding, pans and pens, and everything else that would sustain them for 2 months of mostly outdoor living.
Summers in NYC tend to be hot and humid. Working parents must either send their kids to camps or hire babysitters (could be more expensive). When kids are too young for camps, it could be especially hard on parents, as I quickly found out.
Luckily, someone suggested a “dacha”. I packed half of my apartment and the kid, and off to the woods I went.
Of course, I could not afford to spend the whole summer here, so we have arranged 2-weeks shifts with all the relatives we could find.
On dachas, kids and parents enjoy the company and freedom (there is no need to watch them every second, as they play in the meadows of an enclosed community, with plenty of friendly adults seeing their every move).
I fell in love with the lazy summer days by the lake, and could no longer contemplate a summer without dacha.
Of course, once my son was old enough for summer camp, we cut the season to a month (arranging shifts with relatives was too complicated), and for 3 weeks in August our son would shuttle daily to Nyak from NYC, where his day camp was located.
We could afford this kind of summer kid-care thanks to tax returns on my husband’s w-2 income. My business has been too tiny to afford anything like that.
Even though my husband and I separated 2 yrs ago, we kept filing jointly specifically for this purpose.
But as of this January, he has been laid off, and there are not going to be any tax returns for us next year.
I was coming this July to my little heaven in Catskills, knowing that this was to be the last time.
As my stay here began nearing the end (this Sunday we are leaving), I began to be more and more upset.
I was trying to imagine a summer with no dacha or summer camp:
My son would have to tag along to my work (and I work all over the city) every day. Of course, he would practice reading in Russian on the subway, and then quietly play his DS while I work, and then we would visit our park in the evening.
On weekends, we could go to beaches on Brighton Beach, Long Island or Staten Island. It would be hot, and the water would be cold and dirty…
It would be a very lonely summer for him (all his friends are going to be away on dachas and in camps, but life is life, right?
I thought about getting a dog to brighten his days, but how would we take a puppy to my work? – Scratch that…
Last night, thinking of all that, I could not sleep, so I went out on my porch to have a cigarette.
The lake at dawn was simmering, birds were having a big breakfast, while chirping away, and the beauty of all that was breath-taking.
“I cannot give this up”, I thought. “In fact, for years now my brain has been working over-time to find a way for me to live like that a year round.
This dacha is taylor-made for me by God: I’ve got the best view of the lake from my porch. I have a deck to do my yoga on. I can go for a swim without taking even a towel with me – my cottage is 25 feet from the incredible pristine spring water of this lake. People are great. My friends from NYC live on dachas a walking distance away. If I need company, it’s here; if I need solitude, I have it. I can work here. I have internet, and my cell is working here, so I can network and take orders.
And only $3,000 stand between this, and a 2-months torture for me and my son. This is not a big money. $3,000 can buy 10 days on Bagamas, 1 week of skiing in Catskills, or 1 month here. I am certain that just like God found this perfect place for me, He can find this money for me too.”
I prayed, and peace came upon me. That minute I knew, that I should leave a deposit for the next year. My Universe is kind. It knows no recessions, and is always ready to supply all my needs. This is what I beleve, and this is what I shall have.
