Many people have asked me over the years why I live in Tasmania, especially as for many years a lot of my media writing career was based in Sydney. The reason is that I love it and have a great quality of life without needing the mega bucks required just to get by in big cities. This means I can devote my life to my psychic practice without having to charge people huge amounts for readings.
Spiritually Tasmania is very special. It is a place where something spectacularly beautiful and special is never more than a 30 minute drive from wherever you are – often a lot closer. There are so many places here that lift your spirits and make you feel happy or just take your breath away. I moved to Tasmania in 1980 from the UK when I was still a child and will most likely live here for the rest of my life. Tasmania has had a mixed history, from the almost-successful genocide of the Tasmanian Aboriginal people to the terrible suffering of the convicts and more recently the massacre at Port Arthur in 1996. Despite this, or maybe because of it, Tasmanians have generally had a pretty laid-back and relaxed way of life. One where good food, wine, nature, pleasure and art are a major part of people’s lives.
Many spiritual people have moved to Tasmania over the years. There are many spiritual centres and retreats, either tucked away in the countryside or existing alongside the bustle of cities like Hobart and Launceston. Just about every religion and belief is represented and there are many people who have moved to the quiet and remote areas to live simple lives of meditation and self-sufficiency. There is something about Tasmania that can bring out the higher self. Perhaps it is the unspoilt nature and wilderness and the relatively low population (only 500 000 people on the whole island), but the energy is very pure, like the air and water. The cleanest air in the world is reputed to be in North-West Tasmania, and you can’t help but feel really alive when you breathe it.
The low cost of living in Tasmania means that a modest house on a couple of acres is more affordable than a unit in Sydney. As many spiritual people are not very materialistic and tend to place quality of life and relationships above worldly things, the relatively cheap land and housing allows them to pursue spiritual paths while only working part time or from home.
It is important as a professional psychic that I keep my body healthy and strong, and diet and exercise are an important part of that. Living in Tasmania means that even though I live only 4 kilometres from the city centre of Hobart I can grow my own fruit and vegetables, buy most of my meat directly from a farm and get lots of exercise bushwalking or just enjoying nature. This makes maintaining a healthy lifestyle much easier and enjoyable. I also find that being in the peace and beauty of nature is very healing and balancing when I have done many readings. Just going to the foothills of Mount Wellington where there are streams and lots of wildly growing plants, seems to wash away the psychic baggage, stress and tiredness and makes me feel uplifted and renewed.
So that is why I love it here and will probably never leave.