A Woman’s Perspective on Prepping

I’ve gotten lots of requests to write about a woman’s perspective on prepping.

Uh, what in the heck does that mean?

Here is the beginning of that answer:

For the last few days there have been fairly strong winds blowing. I’ve been on edge, nervous, and fretful, but not quite conscious of it. Sort of like when the radio station turns to static and it takes you a while to notice it. Only today did I realize (again) that sustained strong winds have a disturbing effect on me. Do winds bother you? Have you noticed?

But even though I have ‘the answer’ to why I am feeling nervous, I persist in wondering if it is just me, or is everyone feeling this way too?

So I look for outward signs to see if there is angst reflected out there.

Oh yeah, there is that school shooting which has put everyone on edge. Or perhaps the shooting was an eruption of the collective upset we all feel. Which came first, the chicken or the egg? But regardless, the shooting is clearly polarizing us on a large scale.

If you are in the prepper circles, then no doubt you are hearing all sorts of alternative news. And we are seeing a barrage of ‘2nd amendment is going away’ fear based marketing. It is compelling too – I am thinking, “gosh perhaps I should buy some high capacity magazines” or “hmmm, should I get that book on hiding guns and caching now”?

Yes, I confess – I have deeply indulged in retail therapy in response to the fear and panic that rises up from time to time.

My husband doesn’t like my brand of ‘therapy’ since he pays the credit cards.

It is a good thing he loves me so much.

So I tune in to Alex Jones and brace myself. Sure enough, Alex’s take on the whole thing is that the shooting was a Gov’t/ruling elite sponsored setup with the sole intent of getting better control over us.

I am all too aware of how utterly corrupt our leadership is and I don’t put it past them. After waking up to 9/11 I’ll never have the innocence I did before. But what is really true? I start to go numb trying to comprehend all these horrible twists on reality.

But everyone has an opinion and there is real anger coming up over what should be ‘done’. Everyone is talking, blaming, pointing fingers… Worrying about what will happen next. Signing petitions, arguing, demanding… guessing the hidden agenda of Obama.

So I don’t think the wind is the sole reason for my nervousness. It is both a personal and collective energetic.

It’s night (it gets dark so early – oh yeah, duh! – winter solstice) and I am getting to my rounds. I notice the garden really needs some water. Its been quite dry. As I stand there magically able to offer moisture to the plants I notice how soothed I am by the big healthy heads of cabbage growing. I like to grow cabbages in big bunches every few years and make loads of kimchee. I’ve got jars of kimchee that are four years old that are still good to eat. There is lots of good reasons to eat fermented foods (let me know if you are interested and I’ll write about it). Making kimchee is a super simple process that doesn’t involve ‘canning’. And it has stored fine in my Texas pantry all these years without any special cooling. To find a food that is easy to grow and stores like that is an accomplishment.

As I stand in the garden I wonder if it is the comfort of knowing I have food growing that is so soothing to me? I’ve been soothed by my plants and livestock many times . But perhaps I am feeling a kindness the plants send towards me. My dogs have comforted me many times. Maybe it is simply because it is quiet and peaceful out there.

Maybe I feel good in the garden because it is something I can do. You know the wisdom in that little prayer “do what you can, and let go of things you can’t control”.

No matter. I feel better in the garden. This little place of sanity in a crazy world. This place where right action is rewarded well and stupidity is punished harshly. I love it. Whew, and thank Creation for it.

The winds are still blowing. But I feel better, and the winds are from the south carrying water and it smells like it might rain. That would be really good.

Marjory

Marjory Wildcraft is an Expedition Leader and Bioneer Blogger with The [Grow] Network, which is an online community that recognizes the wisdom of “homegrown food on every table.” Marjory has been featured as an expert on sustainable living by National Geographic, she is a speaker at Mother Earth News fairs, and is a returning guest on Coast to Coast AM. She is an author of several books, but is best known for her “Grow Your Own Groceries” video series, which is used by more than 300,000 homesteaders, survivalists, universities, and missionary organizations around the world.