Runner Up - 2020 Hope for Survival 1st Anniversary Article Category - J.C. in S.C. Preparedness Planning, Management, and Life Style Implementation
J.C. and Mrs. J.C. are on fire with their preparedness plans and implementation. I coudln't be more happy for a family to get his updates and things accomplished off their list of plans. Eager, hungry, and excited to learn. I remember shortly after they attended Heritage Life Skills and a few of my classes, we started communicating about J.C. and Mrs J.C. conducting and building their route plans. It hasn't stopped since then. I always enjoy getting emails from J.C. because they are loaded with information and he has a unique writing style that is included when he tells his stories. Good stuff. Don't stop my friends. Keep charging. (To those reading, J.C. has a new favorite hobby which the picture on the front lends a clue).
So what are you preparing for? As I sat in a class at Heritage Life Skills last year, this was one of the first questions the class was asked by the instructor. This was exactly the kind of question that had brought my wife and me to the event. For around 6 months prior to the event we had been asking ourselves this question. What had happened in our lives to drive us to want to prepare?
Being raised in similar families we were always taught to earn what have, and work even harder for the things you want. Our lives were moving along great, but there was a feeling we needed to do more. Sure we have a nice home, wonderful kids and good jobs that have allowed us to provide our needs and even some of our wants. But there was an overwhelming feeling that more needed to be done.
Diving into the preparedness or prepper lifestyle can certainly lead you through a minefield of rabbit holes to fall into. So when we saw the ad for HLS, we knew that was something we needed to do. Sure we can buy extra food, make sure we have taken security measures, but there has to be more to it than that. And after two and a half days at HLS, we realized there is WAY more to it!!!!
But what really hit home was that as large as the task may seem, it really comes down to a decision to make a lifestyle change. That really sounds like oversimplifying a huge undertaking, but what the last year has taught us, it can be that simple. Now we are still very new to the prepared lifestyle, but it's amazing what time and mental focus has done for us. An honest decision to embrace this as "who we are".
Through shear chance, I ended up taking all of Butch's classes. When I signed up for classes I chose topics that were of particular interest to me. I didn't even realize there were instructor bios you could look at. So obviously I was interested in the content Butch was providing. So I bought "Hope for Survival" during one of the classes. And it has become a wonderful reference guide for questions that arise, as well as a way to get grounded again if we become mentally stressed out at what to do next.
For me, it is great to have a breakdown of the essential categories to help create a way to make tasks I want to accomplish easier. But the number 1 takeaway to help me along this journey is to look at things and decide if they are helping me in one of these areas. If it can't help, it goes. We are only making room in our lives for what makes us better, and helps get us to where we are trying to go.
Being only a year in, we have a very long way to go. And we have certainly had our "learning experiences", but there is a confidence that is building with each passing week. Like most of you, we realize we will never be "fully" prepared, but doesn't it feel great to stand back every once in a while and say, "we are much better off than we were"?
While the book has been a valuable tool for us, the website and podcast are great as well. I can never seem to gather enough information. As I have gotten older, my thirst for learning grows daily. I always start my Saturdays with the Patriot Express newsletter. And the articles throughout the week always have useful information. I also want to thank the guest writers as well for taking the time to put together articles for everyone. Even though I don't know many of you or the readers, I feel like a part of a community that is trying to do great things!!
So what are we preparing for? We are preparing for whatever comes at us next.
Blessings,
Bravo Echo Out,
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