‘Multilocal Living’ Where Did We Come From and Where Are We Going?

I used to ask this question as a child when the world was so big and I was so small. I would eagerly ask a question, and the answer I received would satisfy me, and I would continue my play where I left off. Interestingly, I still ask this question today, and the world is not as vast anymore. However, all the answers seem to be as blurry as looking through frosted glass. Even though we are in the information age, and knowledge is at our fingertips, the opportunity to find answers to every question has never been easier. Yet, as we live, our windows seem to fog up.

Where you are born is your destiny.

Being born in a specific geographic location is no longer destiny. The world has shrunk, and nobody now simply continues to live in the place where they were born. Moving, migrating, changing homes, neighborhoods, cities, and countries have become commonplace. We study in different regions during primary school, middle school, high school, and universities. Even within each educational phase, there is constant change. Just think about how many times we have changed our children’s schools. Our choices of occupation and life partner are also among these changes.

We are in the era of multilocal (living in multiple places), meaning we are living in different places and sometimes in multiple places simultaneously. We are in constant motion, both physically and mentally. People no longer stay in the places they were born, studied, and lived in. They are constantly adapting and experiencing new environments and conditions.

In such a situation, is it possible to plan a fixed future for our children?

The answer is clear: No!

The competencies classified as 20th-21st century skills are no longer distant goals; we must be proficient in them. Adaptation to new environments and conditions now takes the top spot among these skills. We must raise our children in a way that they can live and be happy in any place and condition.

So, how is this possible?

Life is not always rosy. We must not give up on raising our children; we must involve them in dealing with realities. There will be both material and spiritual problems, and we will involve them in discussing and solving these problems. They should be included in understanding why we do what we do, and we should encourage them to be part of the solution, see how problems are solved, and generate solutions together.

We will express our emotions with every change and will share how we overcome them. Everything may not always go as we want or plan. Thoughts can change, and different emotions can arise. Variables can change, and maneuvers can be made. What matters is being able to reestablish our course in this process.

We will give them responsibilities. We will involve them in household chores. Before the age of 18, they should have knowledge and experience about how a household operates. The primary duty of a family is to prepare children for life.

Economic literacy can only be learned in the family. It is not taught in schools. First and foremost, a pocket money system must be established. How much comes in, how much goes out? How to save and how to save efficiently? We will make them individuals who are competent in financial management.

The path to success is not a straight line. We will fall and get up. We should share our failures with our children through sincere conversations. We will show them how we shake off and get up when we fall and continue on our path.

Nothing lasts forever. We must remind them at every stage of life that everything is temporary, that sorrows and happiness dance in harmony, sharing the stage. We must show them how we extract and manage sentences like “This too shall pass” and “Every cloud has a silver lining” without making them into clichés.

Accepting differences, embracing different races, religions, sects, and cultures, making contact with them is now a necessity in the age of “multilocal living.” Those who choose to approach with tolerance, appreciate the richness brought by diversity, and promote it will have an open path.

In order for our children to be individuals who can exist and live in any part of the world, under any conditions, and choose to be happy while living, we must mobilize them to learn languages. Speaking different languages is no longer a privilege; it is now a basic necessity in the age of “multilocal living.”

I wish for our children to be individuals who can exist and live anywhere in the world, under any conditions, and choose to be happy while living, and to have clear windows.