In a World of Modern Conveniences, Why Would I Learn to do THAT?

During and after the Industrial Revolution in the United States, people's lives changed dramatically. Thanks to advances in production, basic needs like food and clothing no longer had to be grown or made at home. This paved the way for a new work force leaving an agrarian life to enter factories in urban areas. In the midst of all of the wondrous modernization, people began to forget how to do basic things to provide for themselves and their families. With each passing generation, these skills seem to diminish into novelty. Today, people have become reliant on a system that, really, is more fragile than many of us would like to think.

Our food supply provides a good example of this fragility. History taught us a big lesson when the Irish potato famine occurred. The potato was a staple of the Irish diet, especially the poor. When disease ravaged the potato crop, it resulted in a million people starving to death. Today, in the United States, we are flirting with the same disaster. Our food supply hangs on a handful of crops (corn, soy, wheat...)  The answer? Plant a larger variety of crops with more diverse attributes and resistances? Sorry, no. The answer, according to our modern agricultural science, is the bio-engineered crop. That's right, it's bigger, it's badder, it's DNA is spliced with viruses and amphibians. It can withstand loads of pesticides, herbicides and some even make their own! Amazing right? Perhaps, but, however you to feel about these modern marvels, consider this: GMO crops are starting to pop up all over the world in places they just aren't supposed to be (some of them haven't even been approved be grown outside of a lab) and it's leaving the scientists scratching their heads. Now these new strains are spreading into other, non-GMO crops. So much so, that it's getting hard to say whether entire crops of non-GMOs can remain untainted. If GMO crops, in the future, are determined to be detrimental to our health or environment (which has happened in the past), we are all up the proverbial doo-doo creek.

While there is no guarantee having our own fruit trees or vegetable gardens will protect us from GMO contamination, knowing how to produce our own food may give us a fighting chance if, heaven forbid, disaster struck our major food supply. Plus, I just like to garden, and build, and raise animals... Call me a traditionalist but, I really like the idea of practicing the skills it took a millenia of hard work to perfect. These methods afforded my ancestors a better chance at survival and maybe even a measure of comfort. And they did this all for themselves, because they had to. But, don't get me wrong. I don't mean to paint too rosy a picture. This knowledge didn't come without the cost of things like war, feudalism, child labor and enslavement. Every period of human history has lessons to teach us including, and sometimes especially, the dark ones. But it has always been the ability to provide for oneself and one's family that has given people power and made them free. Take away a person's ability to provide for themselves and they are completely under your control. This is a scary thought and the best way I've learned to combat fear is to take proactive approach.

The more things I can accomplish myself, the stronger and more confident I become. This is one reason I love a DIY project. Besides saving money and learning something new, finishing any project from building a composter to raising your own livestock can give you a sense of pride in that accomplishment. With skills and knowledge also comes peace of mind. If you have a good understanding of how something works, you know you can deal with it when problems arise (because they will).

Another benefit of learning self-reliance is a deeper understanding of the true cost of resources. I've often heard friends say they are amazed when they realize how much time and effort it takes to grow a garden or raise an animal. It not only makes you think twice about wasting anything but you also start seeing value in almost everything from kitchen scraps and chicken poop to gray water and even urine. Okay, you don't have to take it that far, but you get the idea. It's an important lesson in the whole cost of something and it's one more people should learn.

 

So far, I've presented this blog mostly in the context of food production. It's only one example. There are, of course, countless other ways people can learn to become more self-sufficient. From preserving and cooking their food to alternative energy projects, water collection and storage, natural remedies and simple shelters; I hope to cover it all and more in this blog.

-Anna Kenfield, RA