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Clearly, I am preparing myself and my family for any kind of hardships that lay ahead. I know that we are not immune from an unexpected loss, tragedy or emergency. No one is. But I sit here after reading a short blog from a fellow blogger, prepping2prep. She wrote of her outdoor adventure with her two very small children and it warmed my heart because she showed – in her photo’s – of the adventure and how God provides such bountiful, healthy and free nourishment for us. It’s how he designed us and the earth. Food grows all around us. The earth is lush and full of life, plants and animals.

But we have become so focused on tangible things that make us happy and comfortable for the here and now. We are surrounded by a world with deadlines and the pace is so fast and getting faster. The conveniences we take for granted were not even a pipe dream even one generation ago! Heck, I remember my first company portable computer in 1988. Two floppy disc drives, one with the program and the other for recording your work. WoW! Does anyone remember those clunky things?

And from that dinosaur nearly 25 years ago to micro chips today that can be injected under your skin, it boggles my mind. My adult life has been filled with chasing the “dream” of being successful in a career, raising a family, going to church and living in a nice house in a good neighborhood with well-mannered children and doing it all well. It was exhausting! Probably why I live with migraines to this very day.

I left the workforce nearly a decade ago. It was an adjustment. I realized that so much of who I felt I was somehow became linked with “what” I did, ie my career. Looking back at it from where my priorities are today, it really is sad. So much time lost.

But, I had a successful career but never really was happy with it. I raised my family, the time flew by faster than I realized. We belonged to a lovely church, but it dissolved and we found ourselves loving God and living a moral life, but falling away from attending regularly. We built a lovely home that we still live in, but the economy has hit the financial investment in it. My children? They are all grown and having their own families. It is cliché, but the time flew by so fast. I missed out on so much joy in just being a mommy.

At some point, there must have been an epiphany in my life or God simple got tired of watching me meandering through a life on a path He had not set for me. But a few years ago, it all came into focus and I changed the course of my life. I put Gods Will into action in my life. And I have felt a peace and wellness ever since. I have my life and relationship with my family in its’ proper focus. I am preparing my home to be a beacon of light for my children and grandchildren when the storm comes. I am preparing myself by learning now, before anything really bad has happened, to grow our food. I’ve learned to can, pickle, smoke and dehydrate the bounty of food God bestows upon us. I’m learning to grow fruits and vegetables in the most efficient way in the limited space available by living in a suburban neighborhood. I’ve learned to grind wheat, make bread and even how to keep a supply of yeast for my bread that I will be able to replenish for the rest of my natural life. I’ve learned how to buy food I cannot grow in bulk and store it to last for decades. I’ve purchased water collection and purification systems. I buy canned and freeze-dried foods with shelf lives of 25 years. I’m learning to make the little things that we take for granted now, but would surely miss terribly if they were no longer available or we could no longer afford to buy them. Things like taco and chilli mixes, dry salad dressing packages, buttermilk and sour cream. My goodness, I really could go on and on about all the things I am learning to do that will save us loads of money when we retire in the next couple of years.

My entire lifestyle now is focused on reaching our goals of becoming as self-sufficient as a human possibly can. So, in many ways, I am already easing myself and my loved ones into living without the creature comforts we have indulged in all these years. I believe with all my heart the God is leading me. And He has blessed me with a husband who works with me and holds the same beliefs and goals as I do.

But all these things only came clear to me when I paused, was silent and listened. I let God lead my life instead of me trying to.