Thursday, March 28, 2024

March 26 - The Campfire Trail - A Strange but Relevant Memory

March 26, 2024

Day 907 of the Adventure

Is the whole "Self-Sufficiency" paradigm worth all the work and effort? Obviously, I'm not old enough to have experienced hardship on a scale equal to the Great Depression. My mom was, however. She's been gone several years now but here life was lived in a constant state of remembrance of that part of her life. I suppose some get over it and others don't. I hate to say it but I believe her perspective was driven by fear of a repeat of that experience and she was always prepared to be ready for it if it happened. My dad, on the other hand just tended to go along with it to keep her happy. He seemed to not be as concerned but was okay with accommodating her storing of critical supplies. Our perspective as the kids (my sister and me) did not include Great Depression level experiences. We had everything we needed but not a lot beyond that. At times it felt like lack, but in reality, it wasn't a "desperation" variety of lack. I do remember once, mom bringing home a bunch of cans of USDA commodity food. It was peanut butter, canned meats like chicken and other larges canned goods that I don't remember what all was in them. They were all big, like quate and half gallon sized cans it seemed. The surprising part was that she got them from the neighbors garbage pile on the side of their hill. What she was doing there, I have no idea but she like rummaging through trash and finding things that were still usable. I do remember that it infuriated her that the neighbors, who were receiving government benefits of food were simply throwing a lot of it out. Especially since we were not getting any aid and were having a hard time keeping enough groceries in the house. The food was good. It was sealed in cans so no issues there. That whole memory has been something that's stuck with me my entire life that I've never shared with anyone. 

I bring this up today to make a couple points. First, it's memories like things that I believe pressed me into pursuing a business pathway intended to avoid that kind of life. Which turned out well for us. The second point is that it's always kept me aware of what kind of a life was possible if things, like the economy, began to go south on us. While I feel we've been able to build an economic and financial firewall against that, I know many others who haven't. I guess it's for this reason in particular that I understand and can relate to the stresses associated with the struggle to make ends meet and keep the bills paid and food on the table. So I ask again, Is the whole "Self-Sufficiency" paradigm worth all the work and effort?" 

I'm planning on carrying this thought into tomorrow's post and try to make a little more sense of it. 

Carry On

Adventure Quote:  “You do what you have to do. That's who you seem to be to me, anyway. You're one who does what he has to do.” ― Dean Koontz

Base Camp Coffee of the Day: Lost in the Dark (Colombia Dark French Roast)

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