New gentlemen farmers going country

There seems to be a reverse migration taking place all over the country, although it is definitely on a much smaller scale compared with the diaspora of rural migrant workers flooding the cities.

These are the new country squires, the educated, affluent middle class tired of the city and seeking a quieter, healthier lifestyle in literally greener pastures.

Among our circle of friends, both old and young, some have opted to "retire" to more rural pursuits on the outskirts of the big cities.

They are rediscovering their agrarian roots, taking pleasure in nurturing squashes and melons, and harvesting their own greens from the garden.

Some do it on a smaller scale, tilling their little patches of land diligently. Others have expanded their interests, erecting greenhouses as their smallholding ambitions expand.

Their children and grandchildren run barefoot through the meadows, catching grasshoppers and beetles for pets and frolicking with ducks and geese.

"It reminds me of the days when we were sent down to the country to learn from the farmers," said one friend who has leased a tract of land in Shunyi district on the fringe of Beijing's Fifth Ring Road.

He and his wife were "educated youths" dispatched to the Inner Mongolia autonomous region during the early 1970s. There, they planted potatoes for five years before returning to an interrupted education when they were already in their 20s.

Those were hard years, they both agree, but after they retired, they also agreed that they missed the simple life.

"We did not have enough to eat, but what we had, we had planted with our own hands."

There was no concern about food safety either. They did not have to worry about chemical fertilizers or pesticides. There were none in those days.

After some deliberation, they decided to invest their pensions in a piece of land and returned to some serious gardening. They have found great comfort in this, and their little farm has also become a gathering place for the rest of their "educated youths" work unit.

Not all new rural residents are walking down memory lane.

There are some who have chosen the country life for the sake of their children's future.

"It's a healthier environment to raise a child. My daughter knows what an earthworm looks like and she knows exactly from which end of the chicken the egg comes from."

That's from another friend, a well-known columnist who also freelances as a scriptwriter.

He opted for the feast-or-famine income flow because he wanted his child away from the neon lights and digital drugs so prevalent in the city. The little girl attends the neighborhood school and seems perfectly happy and well-adjusted.

There are also young couples who take advantage of the flexi-hours of jobs spawned by the Internet. They don't have to join the morning and evening rush hours in the city and they simply handle assignments online.

Often, they aren't even in the same city, working from hideouts in smaller, more relaxed places like Kunshan in Jiangsu province, or Dali in Yunnan province.

Most of us are still caught up in the crowds on the hamster mills, but it is comforting to know that some of us have broken the mold and are willing to settle for less in order to get more out of life.

This is truly an organic development, and something to look forward to.

Contact the writer at paulined@chinadaily.com.cn