The Campfire Trail: December 23 - DIY Homestead - The Art of the Downsize (Part 3)

December 23, 2022

Day 448 of the Adventure

Mom!

My little, short series on downsizing is nothing spectacular, I'm sure, to anyone other than those who have been thinking about it for themselves but not yet quite ready to pull the trigger. I'm not sure where the negative stigma of a "downsized" life originated. I suppose it's something that gradually developed as the nation and society grew and prospered. I hate that the word "Prosper" and "Downsizing" seem to be at opposite ends of the scale from one another in a modern civilized life perspective. I really don't equate the two as anything other than potentially compatible. I say potentially, because obviously, there is a size and scale scenario that does equate poverty and small, downsized living together. It just doesn't have to be that way.

I obviously do not remember the childhood life of my parents as they were growing up. I do, however know that they were both "Depression Era" kids. They would have been young enough to not really comprehend the depth of the event from an economic point of view. They certainly remember the life associated with it though. When I was old enough to understand a little of what it may have been like, my grandparents on my moms side still lived in the same home they had lived in when raising their family. It was a small, story and a half house, drafty and cramped. I can still remember the amount of stuff crammed into it. Looking back, I can understand that much of that was due to a survival instinct left over from the depression. My mom, in fact, carried those character traits with her all through life. Saving and hoarding up provisions just in case. She had closets full of blankets and coats. Rooms full of preserved or dried food. Alternative heating and cooking sources. Everything you might do if you were prepping for calamity. Having not experienced the depression era life myself, I had no concept of what or why all of that was necessary. As I watch our economy spiral into inflation and potentially towards recession, the similarities are stark. While the circumstances of the onset of the Great Depression are not really probable in our economy, the results of a catastrophic crash into recession could certainly spark similar economic hardships. Still, with all of that potentially on the horizon, a prepared mindset and lifestyle going in could make the difference between a struggle, or a tolerable, thriving experience. I'm aware of friends and acquaintances who live close enough to the financial edge that any sort of significant down-turn in their personal income would result in extreme hardship. A little bit of my mom's recipe for being prepared would go a long way in preparing for those kinds of conditions. Downsizing may play a role in being better prepared for any of that. (To Be Continued)......... Please consider clicking one of the video links on this page and Subscribing to our YouTube channel for much more info and details on how we did all of this!

Carry On

Adventure Quote: “When I eventually moved to a smaller home, it felt cozy, like having a pair of jeans that fit me just right—no wasted living space and no baggy fabric.” ― Lisa J. Shult

Base Camp Coffee of the Day: Lost in the Fog (Guatemala Decaf)

SNEAK PEEK of our Upcoming OFF-GRID project

Please Consider Subscribing to our monthly "How-To", Do-It-Yourself" newsletter in the upper right corner of this page. AND........

Click any of the following Video links to start your own adventure with us on our YouTube Channel:

Mountain Craft

Lye Soap Making

Rug Weaving

Making Wooden Buckets (Cooper Craft)

Pottery

Cornmeal Grinding

Blacksmithing

Sassafras Tea Making (Chicks in the Sticks video)