Food For Thought

Spencer W. Kimball

April Conference, 1981

"Where you have a plot of land, however small, plant a garden. Staying close to the soil is good for the soul. Purchase your essentials wisely and carefully. Strive to save a portion of that which you earn. Do not mistake many wants for basic needs."

Spencer W. Kimball

October 1976 Regional Representatives

Seminar Address

"Preparedness, when properly pursued, is a way of life, not a sudden, spectacular program."

Glenn L. Pace

Quoting Marion G. Romney

April Conference, 1986

"He made the process sound so simple. "Brother Pace, don't make things so complicated! All we have been trying to do is make our people self-reliant, because the more self-reliant one is, the more able to serve he becomes, and the more he serves, the greater his sanctification."

Baby Steps Part 3

Tip #3

You are not doing this alone.

Not only are you one of MANY who are trying diligently to build up their home storage, but there is One who not only wants you to succeed, but will help you succeed.

Big thanks to Julia who left a comment yesterday and included this verse of "How Firm A Foundation"

"Fear not, I am with thee

oh be not dismayed

for I am thy God

and will still give thee aid

I'll strengthen thee,

help thee,

and cause thee to stand,

Upheld by my righteous omnipotent hand."

There is nothing that brings more peace than the knowledge that the Lord is with us and will help us. There is nothing that cannot be accomplished.

Amen :)!

Baby Steps Part 2

Tip #2
Set Realistic Goals and Continue To Build On Those Goals

I have been reading a book entitled "Food Storage 101, Where Do I Begin?" by Peggy Layton. In it she discusses taking particular steps in a particular order when obtaining your food supply. It starts with just simply finding a place to store, then it moves on to creating shelving, then obtaining alternate cooking equipment...finally leading to a home grocery store. It is not done all at once, it is done step by step.

One thing I have done is take a good look at what I have and decide what areas make me feel vulnerable. I have a great space, I have some good shelving (although I need a few more shelves), I have a decent supply of food but I haven't stored "meals". That is something I need to work on. I also need to purchase some canning equipment that will help me convert my summer harvest into winter eats. I also need to store garden seeds.

This is what I am going to focus on for the next few months. There is A LOT more I need to do, but this is a good start and gives me the satisfaction of "moving forward." I believe these are realistic goals and when I have accomplished these ones, I will move on to the next.

Like I always say...two steps forward and one step back is still progress.

Such is life!!!

Baby Steps

I have been feeling a bit overwhelmed lately. Nothing specific...just a lot of little things that have left me emotionally tired. So it didn't help when I was watching "NIGHTLINE" the other night and watched a story on a "Doomsday Lady". This particular woman, by her own admission, believes that we are at the beginning of the end. She no longer drives a car because she doesn't want to be dependant on gas, she heats her home with one small wood burning stove, and she tries her best to live off her land so she is in control of her own food supply. She is an extremist. She knows it. I know it...but it got me all worked up and nervous.

Then, I went to the grocery store on Saturday and as I filled up my cart...thought of my own dependency on the grocery store and felt those twinges of panic. Unfortunately, I let those feelings fester through the night..."Can we truly store ALL we will need?", "I don't have an endless supply of money, I am limited in what I can purchase each month...what if I run out of time?", "When it really comes down to it...do I really know WHAT we need?", "THIS IS SO OVERWHELMING!!" Have any of you had these thoughts? Does "getting prepared" seem so overwhelming and impossible at times that you just do nothing? You are not alone...I feel that way at times. And it is at those times I have to take a step back and breathe...and come back to reality and remember that I can only do what I can do...and that is enough. Truly.

Due to the fact I am currently refocusing myself...I thought I would devote a few posts on how to get back on track when you become overwhelmed.

Tip#1
Keep reminding yourself of the goal. It is so easy to lose our focus. Our lives are busy and with all we have going on it is easy to get focused on other things and lose sight of the goals we have set for ourselves. If you set reasonable goals and keep those goals in the forefront of your mind (and maybe a post it note on your fridge) you will not only slowly be able to build up a supply, but will be filled with a sense of satisfaction each month as you accomplish what you set out to do.

Guest Post

Not all of us are motivated to get "prepared" for the same reason. What motivates one, may not motivate another. I think there is so much we can learn from each other which is why I asked my aunt and friend, Kay, to write a post about her recent preparation experience.

"Let me start out by saying I am a “Worrier.” Some people might think of me as “Paranoid,” but I prefer “cautious.”

Yes, I have had my fair share of sleepless nights. I stay up worrying about things that I shouldn’t. Like, worrying about what I am going to do when my 2 year old gets drafted in a war. When someone like me hears the words, “If you are prepared, ye shall not fear.” One can only imagine what that creates in my mind.

I have probably thought of every disaster in my mind multiple times. What will happen? Where will my family be when it does happen? Will my children be afraid? Will we be cold? Will I be prepared enough to have the means to provide for my family?

But amazingly I hadn’t thought about the disaster that we have been faced with the past two weeks. A pandemic. All the things I have thought about for years, heat, gas, electricity and water, are not even an issue with a pandemic. You will have all of those things. But still you must be prepared.

You must be prepared enough to not feel the urgency to run to the store the second they announce a pandemic. You need to have all the things that everyone wants, already on your shelves. Because as I learned from personal experience, after it is announced, you can drive to every store within a 30 mile radius and they will not have hand sanitizer.

You must stock pile your shelves enough to have everything you need for at least 3 weeks (in my opinion). So after my 24 hour “freak out” about the swine flu, I finally calmed down and decided to make the most of this pandemic. I have been making lists, of all the things that I wish I had stocked up on, when they announced that the Swine Flu was in Utah.

I personally feel that this Swine Flu scare was a test. A test that I failed, and I don’t intend on failing it again. Next time I will be ready. I know I will still feel anxious about my family’s safety and well being, but I will feel confident that we can stay home until the threat is gone.

Every list for each family is different, but I will just share the things that made mine. This is not a complete list, these are just the first things that came to my mind, but take some time to make your own list."

Hand Sanitizer (of course)

Masks

Latex gloves

Duct Tape

Plastic Sheeting

Comet

Dish Washer Detergent

Dish Soap

Laundry Detergent

Bleach

Disinfecting Wipes

Bars of Soap

Shampoo

Toothpaste

Toothbrushes

Medicine

Chicken (using 1 bag, have 2 more stocked up)

Chicken Nuggets (for my kids)

Peanut Butter

Fruit Snacks

Saltines

Graham Crackers

Cereal (Lots and lots)

Granola Bars

Canned Chicken/Tuna

Cases of Bottled Water

Trash Bags

Ziploc Bags

Milk (currently have 12 gallons)

Butter/Margarine

Bread and bread making ingredients

Vitamins

Learn from the Experience of Others

When deciding what to store it is important to think of food your family already eats. That way, you are eating what you store and storing what you eat. While this is good advice, I also think there is value is learning the stories of those who have lived in a time of hardship...

• what things did they wish they had?
• what was valuable?
• what do they personally store now?

Experience is a wonderful teacher...what a blessing to learn from others experiences.

I read a talk years ago given by F. Enzio Busche. In it he discussed his experiences living in post-war Europe. He talked about the challenges as well as what was valued. One of the items at the top of the list...oil. He said this single item could be bartered for anything, it was worth its weight in gold.

After hearing of this man's experiences, we store extra oil/fat.

There is a dear lady in our ward that also lived Europe during and after World War 2. Her family went through many trials. They went for long periods of time on limited food. I asked her if her past experiences influenced what she currently stored. She told me "absolutely" and one thing at the top of her list was Kool Aid, because it would mask the taste of stored, stale water.

I will be storing fruit drink mix. Not because my family uses it now, but because we may need it in the future.

Food for thought at least.

Make It Personal

I was talking with my husband yesterday about an Elders Quorum activity he was trying to put together that centered around Family History. He said the purpose of the activity was to provide a way for those that attend to come to know just one of their ancestors...to learn a bit more about them...to make Family History personal.

When he said that, something clicked. I realized the effect "personalizing" has on things that are hard. I think it gives us motivation.

For me, storing food has always been personal. Food Storage played a very significant role in my family after my father passed away. It is still personal. I think that is what motivates me to keep going.

What personalizes food storage for me may be very different than what personalizes it for you. Most of the time I think it starts with just a desire...a desire to be obedient, a desire to be self sufficient. Take some time today to just think of ways to make storing food personal...it may just make all of the difference. :)!

Why Be Prepared?

I have been reading an excellent book called "Emergency Food Storage and Survival Skills" by Peggy Layton. When I first got it, I thought it was all about what to do when you have no power or gas. It does talk about those things, but that isn't the focus. The "Emergencies" she talks about can be for a brief or extended period of time, they can be caused by recession, natural and man-made disasters, accident, illness, death, etc. She brings up the point...

Why Be Prepared?
"As a consultant on home storage, I encounter many parents who are motivated to store food and other necessities for emergencies by the thought of hearing their children crying from fear, darkness, cold, and hunger. Parents have the enormous responsibility of providing for and taking care of their children's needs. Those who store food find that having adequate food and emergency supplies on hand brings them peace of mind and enables them to rest easy, knowing their children will be taken care of even if disaster were to strike...Being prepared will give us many advantages, including the following:

• Self-Sufficiency. In times of recession, large companies often announce job layoffs, which may leave thousands of people without paychecks (as a side note, she wrote this book in 2002, long before our current recession issues). If you were to be among those laid off-but you have a reserve of food, cash, clothing, and fuel-you would be able to get through the lean times and not have to ask for help.
• Ability to Help Others. If you are prepared, then rather than being dependent on others to help you, you can be the one to help others who are in need.
• Peace of Mind. If you are prepared, then you will not fear."

We have been told to not go to extremes in our preparation...that we should just do what we can, step by step. But that we should begin...how about today.