But first I want to share what happened today/tonight... I awoke to make coffee this morning, only to find our refrigerator in the kitchen was allowing everything to unthaw. Not a fun way to start the hubby's day. After tinkering with it for quite some time we realized we would need to empty it and wait till Monday to secure a part in StL. Normally emptying the frig would not be a problem because we have another in the laundry room and a deep freezer in the shed. However, I had just done a BIG meat stock up and filled them close to capacity. So we literally had to cram what we could into the other two, and that my friends was a pain in the butt! I couldn't cook (no room for anything left over) so we ran into town for dinner, got home as it started to storm and lost power!
Now those of you that know us well know that we have begun to "prepare for disasters" of any sort, whether it be economic, natural or otherwise. I guess you could call us preppers, but not like you see on the popular TV show. No, sorry... no running around in gas masks here or learning to eat road kill. Just a sense that we will never be caught off guard like the people who suffered thru Katrina, dependent on a government to come "rescue" them. In fact I like to think of us a "homesteaders", self reliant and self sufficient, but I digress... back to no power...
I was getting a bit worried that ALL the meat I just bought would melt and spoil before the power returned when it hit me! I mean it really hit me like a ton of bricks... what if it never came back on??????????? What if one day, out of the blue something happened and the US was suddenly off grid? Would you have the ability to deal with that LONG TERM? It made me realize that even with all the preparing we've done, it was clearly not enough. Think about the psychological impact it would have on your families if you didn't even have a way to light the night temporarily, or flush the toilet if your on a well and all electric?? and it d i d n ' t... c o m e... b a c k... o n..? God doesn't promise a problem free life, in fact He guarantees it will be difficult and that it will get worse. That tells me to BE PREPARED.
Thankfully the power did come back on within a few hours and ALL the meat I bought was safe. The majority of it will be made shelf stable thru PC'ing, hopefully before anymore power outages, and all will be well for a long, long time... But, I have a new perspective on what we need to be working on in our "preparedness" as a family. Through all our research we've learned that on our current budget, to try and recreate "electricity" is not cost effective, and for the most part not practical. For every "alternative power source" (other then solar and wind, both of which are crazy expensive!) you need things that will eventually be hard to obtain in a SHTF scenario that lasts long term. Gas, propane & batteries will be of limited use with time, either by scarcity or shelf life. As foreign as it may sound in this technologically driven society, to be prepared to live, to the extent that one can, without power... "off grid" is the only sustainable method if something happens long term. Do you really know how to do that? I can tell you that with every new thing my family learns about being "prepared" we find 10 more we need to learn... it's a never ending process but you have to start somewhere.
Some people "prepare" out of fear and I can tell you, that is the wrong reason to prepare. We do not serve a God of fear and confusion, scripture is clear. We serve a God who says to watch and be ready (prepared) because we live in evil times that will become worse. Are you ready? Are you preparing for the time to come whatever that may hold? Something I hope and pray you will think about if you're not already.
Sherri <><
I thought this picture was a hoot! In the "prepper world" Zombies are people who fail to prepare.
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