Those of us who are from the 1930-1940s generation may have a lot of childhood memories from our parents and grandparents that will serve us well as we approach TEOTWAWKI. As I meditate back on the sketchy memories of childhood, I can recall a number of things that today would be called “survival living” but for us at that time was simply “living.”
In survival times, let us not forget our kids emotional well-being. In addition to needing extra love and assurance from parents and grandparents, there are many simple ways to help them entertain themselves and break free of the video/television/iPod-in-your-ear addictions. A simple iron or steel wheel with a metal rod with a flat bend at end will entertain them for hours as they roll it all over the yard. In the south, playing “doodle-bug, doogle-bug, won’t you come out” is a joy when you “doodle” the concave hole and watch the bug back out. Bags and bags of marbles are great as well as building blocks. These are some of the ways we entertained ourselves as kids.
Moving on to the real topic of survival, many of us have a head start in our preparations while others are just now waking up to reality that they are seriously behind the eight-ball, or they think they will “take” what someone else has—not recommended, especially in my state, where carrying concealed weapons is legal. We know food is critical. We know defense if critical. There have been many great articles on this posted by readers and owner of this site. The thing I’ve had a hard time understanding as a senior citizen is: “I have a bugout bag but where in the heck am I going to bugout to”? Those in the country are going to get overrun by “bugouters” apparently, and that will be a serious moral and safety problem. We’re in the country, but if we are forced to “move on”, we’ll be in a world of hurt after initial supplies run out. We’re too old to camp out in these freezing mountains in winter so we are praying our current home will protected and safe. Ultimately, God is our hiding place and our covering of protection.
Even if many of us are not in ideal locations (who can know where that is except by the specific guidance of the Lord), we can learn to make do where we are. Two out of five neighbors are stocking up on food. The others will come knocking when they are hungry and we will share what we can as we can see skills they have which may be needed and available when they are hungry enough to trade. We are putting aside extra beans and rice for them as we would rather feed them than fight them, and trust God to stretch our food. If we had the money, we would probably just pack up and leave the country but financially that is not an option.
For water, we have a well and can always pull the pipe and pump to drop down a well bucket from a rope if we get desperate. Fortunately a well driller lives within walking distance. We installed a 5000 gallon water tank to last a while along with a 1,000 gallon propane tank. Since the water has a lot of iron in it and needs to be filtered, our Big Berkey does the job, and for our backpack we use Seychelle water bottles. All these have worked well for us. We also make our own colloidal silver and use it for almost everything needing purifying including our dogs’ water, washing our fruit and veggies, rinsing our meat and chicken, etc. While we can, though, we purchase the “silver sol” (comes under several names) and take it internally daily for health maintenance. I also used it to get rid of an abscessed tooth infection recently instead of taking antibiotics which I don’t tolerate well. We brush our teeth with it, disinfect our brushes, we spray it in our eyes for infection, we spray it up our nose for sinus infection, etc. Colloidal Silver or Silver Sol and Olive Leaf Extract capsules are our number one line of defense for practically all illnesses we get from flu to cold to infection to pneumonia, all which we have experienced.
For over 10 years we have heated with woodstove only. For backup electricity, we put in an 8 KW backup solar system with two inverters so we can pump water from the 220v pump in the well for about 45 minutes a day in sunshine before it stops. We did not tie into the grid as we did not want the power company controlling our system. With a transfer switch, we switch back and forth as needed. Here in sunny northern Arizona, a solar oven cooks great! We cook tender, melt in your mouth, roast beef and chicken in it now but will resort to beans and rice later. If you can’t afford the good ones sold online, you can make a cheap one yourself with a box, aluminum foil, duct tape and glass, or search online for methods suggested. We did buy a Rocket stove which will cook with twigs but also learned to make a cheap one with a #10 can with bottom cut out. We have used a #10 can cut to half size and put a wire screen on top wired down for a tortilla cooker.
Every time the grocery store has the 1 pound bags of frozen vegetables on sale, I buy 12 or 13 bags at a time and dehydrate them in my large 9-tray dehydrator and vacuum seal the dried veggies in quart and half gallon canning jars. Once they are dry, no worries about spoiling. I vacuum seal everything I can get my hands on in way of dried food products. I used to do a lot in the vacuum seal bags, but they do not hold up over time and mice and bugs can eat through them, so now I do it all in jars. A good vacuum sealer, with the extra tube and extra lids for regular and wide mouth jar sealing, is one of the best investments you can make.
As far as a garden, all the years of chemtrail spraying we have endured here seems to have ruined the soil, trees and plants. The severe drought in Arizona seemed to start about the time they started spraying as we would watch them cover the skies which would divert the rain clouds. Whenever we would hear a weather report to expect rain in a day or so, we knew we would get sprayed and just like clockwork, they sprayed, and no rain. Even with building up the soil, things just don’t grow as well as they should. The earthworms seem to be gone. Long term food survival is still a formidable challenge in my mind. I am purchasing seeds to sprout for live enzymes. There’s not enough natural plant life to support any chickens or other food animals. We would love to relocate to an area with good soil & water, and Christian neighbors and preppers but have not found that place yet.
I’ve learned how to take a bath without bathing, a lesson from my grandmother who never had an indoor bathroom. Wet a washcloth, spray with colloidal silver or nano silver and a little perfume and wash down with it and you will feel as clean and fresh as a shower. You use hardly any water that way. Even though we are on a private well, we practice water conservation in many ways. One way we have done for years is to draw the hot water into gallon jugs until it begins to run hot to use, then we give that to the dogs for their water. That amounts to two gallons of water saved each time we wash dishes or take a shower.
I make frequent trips to the thrift stores to look for fill in supplies. Made a major find this week when I found boxes of medical supplies like 4×4 drain sponges, abdominal pads, drainage bags with tubes, tracheostomy drain sponges, box of 50 surgical masks, surgical gloves – all for a song! Could not believe my find. My sister is a trained paramedic so figured she would know how to use the medical stuff. Also found a few camouflage small military pouches that attach to a back pack. Previously I have purchased from that thrift store woodland camouflage shirts, pants, canteens with covers, backpacks, etc. I have found that thrift stores for pets located in upscale areas net better stuff
The local swap meet yields all kinds of neat survival items from military 3-part sleeping bags (found 2 sets), to ALICE packs with frames, to knives to cast iron cookware. Online stores have yielded me good prices on gas masks and canisters. You just have to look.
All this and I am a 68 year old grandma! If I can do it, anyone can. Now our challenge is to go through everything, sort and inventory. For strength we will rely on our strapping 6’3” tall 18 year old grandson who has always lived with us. So far we have put him through a two year Heavy Equipment Operator class to learn how to operate all kinds of heavy equipment. We had him join the Civil Air Patrol to learn skills there like desert survival training and search and rescue. Those skills will be valuable later on when the SHTF. I’m also thinking about putting him in a karate class. Invest in your kids and grandkids in this way. It will pay off.
With all that said and done, do we feel prepared? No, as there is always more to learn and do physically, but even with the best preparations, the unknown is always lurking, waiting like a lion to pounce on the unwary, unsuspecting ones. We do not have any underground bunker or cave. The ground is so rocky that is not an option. Theft is so bad in this rural area, you cannot leave anything unattended, especially in remote areas.
Having everything in one place goes against all wisdom in prepping. But having done all, we stand.
So I end with this: “He that dwelleth in the secret place of the Most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty. I will say of the Lord, He is my refuge and my fortress: my God; in Him will I trust. Surely He shall deliver thee from the snare of the fowler, and from the noisome pestilence. He shall cover thee with His feathers, and under His wings shalt thou trust: His truth shall be they shield and buckler. Thou shalt not be afraid for the terror by night; nor for the arrow that flieth by day; nor for the pestilence that walketh in darkness; nor for the destruction that wasteth at noonday. A thousand shall fall at thy side and ten thousand at thy right hand; but it shall not come nigh thee. Only with thine eyes shalt thou behold and see the reward of the wicked. Because thou has made the Lord, which is my refuge, even the most High, thy habitation; there shall no evil befall thee, neither shall any plague come nigh they dwelling. For He shall give His angels charge over thee, to keep thee in all thy ways.” Psalm 91:1-11.