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Mark Kutolowski's avatar

I think an important art in this time is the ability to be sober and prepared in response to the real risks of collapse, and at the same time to live spiritually with our hearts centered more on the eternal than on that which is passing.

For our family it means a habit of providing our own food and firewood from the land, and keeping a substantial surplus on hand. We're very fortunate to have a land base and a lifestyle that's already quite resilient. Yet, we spend about 2 hours per day in liturgical prayer, which is terribly inefficient from a materialist's prepping standpoint. It amounts to 28 hours of 'wasted' adult labor per week. However, it' what we acquire in prayer, not the presence of chicken and lamb in the freezer or grain in the pantry that gives us peace and strength in the face of reports (real or imagined) of war, famine and collapse on the horizon.

Truth be told, I'd rather starve with a heart rightly aligned to God than to keep my body alive and 'survive' by doing harm to others. I try to hold all the preparation lightly - we might be called to give aid to others beyond our means and suffer in common with the rest of our local community.

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Mary's avatar

I'm a little surprised that I've not seen much about befriending neighbors and getting to know them and work with them. What about extended family? Church communities? Cultivating relationships seems as important, if not more important, than growing food and storing wood. Food and fuel are, obviously, important, but we all need more than that to survive. It seems to me that a group of people pooling their skills and resources will be the way to maintain and build a good place where you and your loved ones can flourish.

And, of course, none of us has as much power or control as we like to think. I think Jack hit on the most important thing - learning to trust in God's providence.

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