My son and his family visited me last week. Always a joy! During the conversation one of my adult granddaughters remarked that I was the most prepared person she knows. And that got me to thinking about why this lifestyle is so important to me.
Many moons ago when my 4 children were young, I found myself in a bad place. Single Mom. My job disappeared. The bills continued. We were living in a house that was on a plot of land where a garden could not be planted. Hills and pine forest don't work well for planting seeds.
Before I could get our lives back under control, I ran out of food. There is little more terrifying than to have hungry children and nothing to feed them.
I loaded my kids into the car. We drove the few miles to my aunt and uncle's house. It was late in the afternoon. I knew that my aunt would insist we stay for supper.
The fact that my kids could eat outweighed the humiliation of not being able to take care of them myself.
Thankfully, things changed for the better right away. Found another job. Bought groceries. Fed my family.
But then I did one more thing. I moved.
Found an old farmhouse out in the middle of nowhere. It was affordable. It had a huge garden area. It had a shed to house chickens. There was an old car sitting on the property. A friend spotted it and said he sure could use that rusted out car for parts. Worked out a deal where he got the car and I got a milk cow. Kids now had a source of milk and cream and butter.
You do what you have to do. To this day, more years later than I care to count, I still feel like if one of my kids or grands or great-grands came to me hungry and I had nothing to feed them, I think it might break this old heart.
Those of us who are living this lifestyle, for that is exactly what preparedness is, have a story. Most of us have gone through circumstances that brought us to this place. Whatever the reason, the decision to prepare for bad times is one of the best deccisions we can make.
Necessity is a fine teacher, unless one is of the latest generation which apparently thinks somebody else should take responsibility. Those of us who survived true hardship will generally do just fine.
ReplyDeleteGood to hear from you, Rev...
ReplyDeleteYou are spot on. Seems to me that the younger generation expects someone else to take care of them.
I was raised by a father who worked two and sometimes three jobs in order to take care of my mother who was chronically ill. Refused any kind of government assistance. Never complained. Did what he felt he had to do.
I raised my kids the same way. Sadly, it seems that some of the younger ones do not want to take responsibility. And I'm thinking that may just be our downfall.
My beginning was three years of 'seasonal' employment which meant I could be fired at a moment's notice and whim of my employer. I was an uncertified accountant and deemed disposable. Fine, I used the time to study more and become certified (another story). It was during this time that I found Tightwad Gazette and other sources on living frugally. I learned about building a pantry and creating my meal plan , such as it was, around my pantry. Then I'd restock the pantry as sales occurred. I learned to bake all my baked goods from bread to crackers. Homemade granola was a favorite. I learned to can. I am grateful for that season of my life and what I learned.
ReplyDeleteSJ now in California
SJ...I am still amazed at how many folks don't understand that life as we know it could end quickly. Pretty sure that those in the Depression era had no clue the banks would close and they would lose their life savings.
ReplyDeleteWhatever the reason, learning and putting what is learned to good use is always commendable. Plus the fact that hunger will not be a problem.
Good on you, my friend!
Vicki! I've been checking every other week or so to see if you'd posted anything. Imagine my surprise to find five! All the goings-on in Minneapolis might have you writing a full-length book here. I wish it weren't the case. And who ever would have thought it would get so crazy there? New York? Sure. Chicago? Absolutely. San Francisco? Yep. But I never would have put Minneapolis on that list. Sorry you have to see that.
ReplyDeleteAs to this post, I grew up solidly middle class. Apparently, my parents had lean times when I was too little to remember, due to occasional strikes. I never did without and never saw my parents stress. They also weren't religious and didn't attend church. I went alone. And I read the scriptures, and from them and talks and lessons in church, I knew we'd have hard times before the Savior's return. I never wanted to experience the horror of not being able to feed, clothe, or nurse my family. So I prepared, asking others to teach me the basics when I was a teen, and learning the rest on my own. And feeling so blessed when God showed the solution to problems I'd pondered on for years, as well as answers to questions I didn't know I had. Like SJ above, the Tightwad Gazette was also a great blessing for me raising my family years ago, and inspiring me with her style to begin writing my blog years later.
Take care and stay warm. And keep writing. I've missed you.
So nice to hear from you, Jennifer! Guess there has been so much happening that ticks me off, I just couldn't keep quiet any longer!!
DeleteI was raised by poor / middle class parents. Mother was ill most of her life. Dad worked hard to keep the family going. Both taught me skills that have helped in my preparedness life.
Good for you in taking the initiative to learn skills that we use. So many believe that nothing bad will ever happen to them, which is why we do what we do.
Your blog inspires me. You have a wealth of useful information to share nad I thank you. Take good care, my friend!