Homesteading as a moral commitment

“I’d love to do what you’re doing,” we sometimes hear, followed by the inevitable “but.” There are people who say they would love to live a more self-sufficient life, to be off-the-grid, to homestead out in the country, growing their own food and living a more intentional life. Many of these individuals are sincere and do wish to break free of their enslavement to a social and economic system that holds them tightly in its grasp, but how many of them will ever move on their desires?

It was very encouraging recently to come into contact with a man and his family who earnestly desire to become modern day homesteaders. I will do anything and everything I can to help them realize their dreams (and whomever else). This family’s desire is not just a passing fancy; they are serious and are doing things now to make it a reality. Unfortunately, most of the people I’ve heard express affinity for what my family and I are doing are most likely never going to do it. They have a romantic notion of “the simple life” (which ain’t so simple) but they value some things too highly to give them up to see their notions become reality.

Recently, in passing I mentioned that living a homesteading life requires a moral commitment, but I didn’t elaborate on that point. Basically, the morality of the situation resides in believing it is good/better to pursuing this particular way of living, an intentional life, as I like to call it. For us it is better to live without debt than to borrow money in order to have things which we may want but don’t need, realizing the difference between wants and needs. It is right to invest our energy and labor in providing as much as we can for ourselves rather than relying on industrial mechanisms to make things available for us via an exchange of my labor in the form of dollar bills. Being together and working together as a family is more highly valued than having enough money to provide a bigger home and more things at the expense of family. These are all moral choices that guide our way of life.

You can examine anyone’s life and begin to see what they value. You can do that with my life and find things that reveal moral commitments I should change (I need to be examining my life for this purpose, actually). For instance, if one values things over relationships, this is evident. Granted, some do not see any other way to live than the usual, standard way of living that is all around us; they’ve been conditioned and trained to accept life on terms that they did not create. Intentionally changing the terms upon which we live our lives requires discernment, seeing how we live in its bare, naked form, for what it is.

Western culture and economics dictate a certain way of life, one that I find morally problematic in many ways. Until I had opportunity and reason to question the context of modern life, I didn’t see this. As my eyes opened to the problems of our socio-economic system, I was challenged with the responsibility of making a choice about what to do. Should I go along with what I understand is wrong but which is difficult to disentangle myself from (the easier path)? Or, should I act upon my understanding and choose to change the circumstances of my life, living in opposition to much of the socio-economic order surrounding me? That’s a tough place to be, but one in which everyone makes a choice. Even choosing not to decide is still to make a choice.

We are surrounded by romantic notions of rural/farm life and the good old days. Most of these notions are not in sync with the reality of rural/farm life as it exists today. Examine the packaging in the grocery store to see the images that are sold to us, images that draw upon our romantic notions. These are a part of our social psyche, but they are not based upon current reality. These are powerful images that when we buy things from the grocery store may help us feel good about what we’re buying and eating and keep us from seriously considering the real conditions of production. They are evidence, though, of the power of our notions and their very real existence.

I think it is these same kinds of romantic notions which lead people to say they would love to live a self-sufficient life but to never make changes in their lives to realize at least part of that desire. Being a homesteader doesn’t always mean owning a chunk of rural property with enough room to raise a large garden and a menagerie of animals. However, it does mean making choices and decisions in our lives that separate us from the hegemony of the socio-economic system in which we are all enslaved. It means frugality. It means doing as much for yourself and your family as you can. It means taking increasing responsibility for your life in meaningful ways within the current sphere of your existence. It’s a process, not a destination.

I wish to encourage all who want to homestead to take steps right now to realize their desires. However small the steps may be, start taking some now. Limit your consumption of industrially produced products by making do with what you have or making for yourself. Focus on and prioritize those things which are more meaningful, like time together as a family playing and working. Grow a tomato plant in a pot. Preserve some of your own food. Make your choices more intentional with a goal of realizing your dreams/desires one step at a time.

There’s nothing wrong with romantic notions. They can guide and motivate us. We need to take responsibility for our our actions, for the moral choices we make every day, with an end in view, not because it is a romantic notion, but because it is a better way to live. Our moral commitments are revealed in what we do. What does what we’re each doing say about us and our values?

We need to teach and to learn

We take a lot of things for granted. Our way of life is encompassed with so many blessings. We are together as a family every day. I don’t have to run off to work somewhere off the farm, and we sit down to eat together as a family three times a day. We eat food that is good for us, not the standard American fair.

Anne and I watched Food, Inc. recently (via Amazon Video on Demand). It’s a sobering portrayal of commercial/industrial food and the multi-national companies behind its production. We were already aware of a lot of things in the film. In fact, we stopped eating commercial meat, dairy, and poultry products in 1996 because of concerns about that whole industry. We studied and learned more about the appalling treatment of animals in these industrial production facilities and desired even less to consume their products. Who would want to eat beef that was fed rendered animal refuse and chicken litter?

We took steps when we lived on the outskirts of Bloomington, Illinois, to raise our own food. When we bought our house there, it came with a 3/4 acre lot across the street in front of the house (it was previously the right of way for an interurban railroad). I worked up two large garden plots, and we grew a lot of vegetables. We planted fruit trees and bushes, but we moved before we were able to enjoy any harvest from them.

We moved here to Kentucky in order to further pursue out desire to grow our own food, including animal products. We have structured our lives around what is important: faith, family, and food. It is a blessing from God that we enjoy what we have here, and we are thankful every day. But, there are so many who don’t have the knowledge to make significant differences in their lives, to grow their own food, to refuse to be in debt, to champion the importance of family time together.

What about those individuals who are ‘caught’ in a trap of debt and low wages? What about for the families for whom it is more economically feasible to buy a hamburger than an apple? We want to see changes in our food industry, and consumers have a lot to say about how things go in this industry. But, when people are enslaved by debt which has been pushed on us through national and local economic policies (our economy is based upon debt – for example, consumer spending does not take into account whether any of the things bought are actually “paid for,” only that they were purchased somehow, usually via debt encouraged through low interest rates), the options readily available to them are severely limited.

It’s easy for me to garden, hunt, raise animals, etc. I not only have the knowledge about how to do so, I also have room and opportunity for all of these things. I’m not trapped in a city somewhere. Sure, even urban dwellers can grow some things, theoretically, but what is the reality of their lives as they seek to make ends meet? Do they even know that they need to? What is the path to take in order to get out of this ‘trap’ that we as a society have created in which we are dependent upon cheap “food”?

As I look at it, the need for education is apparent. Our schools aren’t teaching about ethical and responsible food consumption and production. Our churches aren’t. Our governments aren’t. The multi-national food corporations aren’t. It’s not even happening within most families. I don’t expect to change the world in a grand way with what I’m doing, but I am shaping the next generation through my children. We are setting an example for others by what we do and what we value. But, even so, I can’t take credit for the ways in which my eyes and heart have been opened. I have made choices based upon opportunities that were presented to me, opportunities that I recognized because of things I learned that made those opportunities possible, but my learning was shaped and influenced by my coming into contact with others and their knowledge.

All of us should seek to share our knowledge with others and to continue to learn from others. We’re involved in a great educational experience, and we’re all in it together. As we endeavor to change the world and bring education to others, may we each have the humility to learn from one another.

Our new pond: current photos

The pond is currently a little less than two feet from being at full pool. Another two or three inches of rain should bring the level up to the overflow. The children and I have enjoyed skipping stones on the water and thinking about swimming next summer.

We added 200 1” – 3” redear sunfish on November 25. Actually, Dad put them in the pond since we were in North Carolina visiting family (we left Mom and Dad here to take care of things). I only found three fish that didn’t make it. The children and I occasionally see some of the them swimming near the surface. We also put 2 pounds of flathead minnows in at the same time. I haven’t seen any of them, but I don’t reckon they went anywhere else.

I took the following photos a few days ago. The pond level hasn’t changed since then. I’ll post some more photos when it’s full.

    

I'm in North Carolina for the weekend

Anne and I decided on making a quick trip to North Carolina to visit her siblings. We didn't get to go for Thanksgiving last year. It's become a yearly tradition for all five siblings and their associated families to get together for Thanksgiving and Ruth and Harvey's house. Last year, for various reasons, we were unable to attend, and we missed everyone. So, earlier in the week, we decided to make the trip.

We're staying at Ruth's house, and Anne's other siblings will come over on Sunday. They all live within 2 or 3 hours of Ruth's house. We'll be heading back home on Tuesday.

Mom and Dad are taking care of things at home while we're gone. There are many advantages to having a homesteading community. One of these is that it provides built-in help. Dad's been helping me a lot during the last week or so with cutting and skidding cedar logs out of the woods. These will be for the house. While we're gone, he's taking care of the bovines and the turkeys.

Although he's nine months old, Chucky Joe still believes that he needs to nurse, and Josey continues to let him do so. He went a week or two without nursing. I think that Josey kicked him off during that time because he had made her teats sore. But, since they've healed (mostly), she's let him back at it. The calf weaner didn't seem to make a whole lot of difference for him. So, I took it off the other evening.

Actually, with him nursing, it makes chores a little easier. Chucky gets locked up separately at night, and I milk in the morning. This also gives Dad the option of not milking while we're gone -- just leave Chucky with Josey to do the job.

There's a lot of work to be done once we return home. It'll soon be gardening time, and there's a lot I want to do on the house. Taking this trip now is good because it's before the really busy time gets going. It's nice to see everyone. Anne is out enjoying they day treasure hunting with Ruth.

Homestead objectives (part V)

Although you might not be able to tell by looking out the window, we live in turbulent times. I have some very real concerns about where things are headed for our country and globally. I’ve had some of these concerns for a number of years. One of our objectives for homesteading is to be prepared for emergency situations.

There is always the possibility of our utilities being disrupted, whether electricity or water. There are many natural means by which this could happen, and I don’t like feeling dependent upon them. Yeah, we like having the conveniences utilities afford, but when they are disrupted, what then? Years ago, we lived in Southern California. The Los Angeles area is located in what is actually a desert. Yet, there are millions of people living there in a relatively small area, dependent upon electrical service and municipal water. What happens if either of those is knocked out for any length of time? There are earthquakes out there, so this is not a far-fetched idea. Besides, where does the water for the L.A. area come from? There are many demands upon that water source.

Then, there’s the need for food. Seems that just about everyone likes to eat. How much of the food consumed in the L.A. urban area is grown there? I’m using the Los Angeles area as an example, but it’s not the only urban area in which people live with great dependence on services that can be interrupted. Over 80% of the US population lives in urban and suburban areas. It used to be that the cities were surrounded by truck farms which produced much of the food consumed there. That’s no longer the case. Food travels long distances (thousands of miles) to reach the consumer.

I believe that our economy is in bad shape. Ours is a debt-based system, not one based upon savings and sound monetary policy. The over-extension of credit has led to a problem in which we are faced with a major recession or even a depression. Our politicians, rather than deal with the situation in meaningful and honest ways, vote to give yours and my tax dollars to those who are complicit in creating the problems (along with the US Congress and the Federal Reserve). It doesn’t take a genius to figure out that a GDP growth of 3% and a debt growth of 6% is not sustainable and leads to horrible ends. (You can read more about our economic situation here.)

There are other concerns, of course, that have motivated us to living our homestead adventure. It is part of being prepared for an uncertain future. Not just for ourselves, though. We have a desire to help our families, neighbors, and friends in the event of need. In the event of a major catastrophe, it would be a blessing to those around us to be able to meet some of their needs. So, yes, we are concerned for ourselves, but it’s bigger than that. God wants us to each have a heart of mercy and to love others. Lessening our dependence upon external services and being able to provide for many or most of our own needs means that we can be in a position to help others whenever it might become necessary.

We don’t live off the grid, at least not yet. But, we could if necessary. We heat with wood and can cook with it, too. We have other water supplies besides municipal water. We grow much of our own food and can grow more (we’re working on doing just that). We live within our means, meaning we haven’t developed “needs” that would prevent us from living more simply than we already do.

It would be nice if the only emergency situations we will ever face are of short duration, like the power being out because of an ice storm. However, because we can see the possibilities and potential for much greater social and economic disruption, it makes it all the more important to us to seek to be prepared as well as possible for those eventualities. Better safe than sorry.

Homestead objectives (part III)

The third objective we have is to live debt free.

Yeah, we could do this where ever we might live, whether homesteading or not. In fact, that would be a good idea, and it’s what we would be doing, I believe.

I grew up in a family that was monetarily poor (we were rich in many other things and ways). Out of necessity, my parents had to manage their money carefully and well. Without even knowing it, I learned some things about money from them. I’ve not been one to go deeply into debt at any time, but I have utilized credit at different times. I worked my way through my first four years of college, graduating without any student loan debt. Anne and I were married shortly after I graduated, and we did accumulate a certain amount of credit card debt and used a personal loan to buy a used car. There were no student loans for my years in graduate school either, thankfully. But, we still seemed to carry a bit of credit card debt through the years.

In 1999 we obtained a 100% mortgage in order to buy a house. Shortly after that we began to get really serious about paying off all of our debts and to pay off our mortgage as quickly as possible. We formulated a 10-year plan in which to be completely out of debt, including our mortgage. At the end of that time, we were going to buy some property using our equity and begin our homesteading adventure. God had other ideas. He modified our plan, and it became a four year plan.

Buying our 57 acres was the beginning of truly having no debt. We were able to pay for the property completely with the equity we got out of our house in Illinois and with what we had saved. We had figured early on that one way to be able to homestead involved limiting our expenses. One of the biggest ones oftentimes is a mortgage. So, we didn’t even consider property that was beyond our means which would require borrowed money. Almost six years down the road, we take living without a mortgage for granted.

Debt isn’t even an option. We don’t have any credit cards. We did for a while, paying them off every month. We decided that we didn’t need them. If we want to buy something online or pay at the pump to fill up a vehicle, we can use our debit card. If we don’t have the money, we don’t try to get it from the bank, and we don’t put it on a card.

Debt seems to be a way of life for people all around us. How much of that borrowed money is spent on consumable items that don’t produce anything? Living beyond our means puts us into slavery; we owe part of our lives to the lender until its paid off. There are times when there are not many other options, I will admit, but as a way of life, it is not sustainable. Non-sustainability is a contrary goal to a homesteading objective.

When I walk on our place, I’m walking on my own dirt. I paid for it. Yeah, I have to pay property tax which is like paying rent to the government to “own” my own place, but that’s another issue. I count it a blessing to live debt free, and I thank God for leading us to see debt as slavery and to get out of it. It is much better and more peaceful to be free.

Homestead objectives (part II)

I made a list of some of our main objectives thinking that I would write one post describing them. Then, I started and determined that such a post would be quite long, longer than I had thought it would be. So, I’ve broken it down into individual posts focusing on the individual objectives. The first one I covered was to grow and harvest good food.

The second objective I’ll discuss is to grow together as a family.

Homesteading provides opportunities for us to be together and to work together that would not otherwise be possible. I’m very blessed in the job that I have because it allows me to work from home. It’s also not full-time work. The income it provides is less than many families spend just for food each month, but it allows us to be together. We have made choices about how we live, and we appreciate the advantages that come with it. Sure, it would be nice to still have the income I had before we moved here, to still live in our big, red-brick house, but I would be gone much of each day and several evenings every week. I wouldn’t be around for us to eat three meals together as a family like we do now. I wouldn’t be there every night to help get the children ready and into bed and to kiss them goodnight. We wouldn’t be together as we are now. Our children are growing up with their daddy as an every day part of their lives. In fact, Malchiah and Naomi have always had it so.

We homeschool our children. There are too many influences in the public schools that we do not want them exposed to. Our children do not watch TV or play video games. They don’t go out to eat or to movies. They don’t do many of the things that most of society thinks of as “normal.” They aren’t deprived, though. They have 57 acres of woods and fields to run around in. They have great imaginations and are able to use them. They have responsibilities and jobs and are learning the value of working. They have been around and know about the process of live, its beginnings and endings. They are developing a healthy respect for and understanding of the purpose of the animals God has created. They are learning about proper stewardship for the things God gives us responsibility for. 

Ideally, schooling is a natural, normal part of life. We try to make that so. We also use some specific curricular tools and have “lesson” time for the children. They’ve been read to since they were just wee little things, developing a love of reading at an early age.

Our children are wonderful blessings, and God has given us a great responsibility in raising them properly. I wish I could say that we do it well. I know we don’t do it as well as we should. But, I can’t imagine the additional challenges that we would face in this task if we lived in different circumstances. When I was young, my family was financially poor, but we were rich in many other ways. We worked hard raising, harvesting, and preserving food. I didn’t always appreciate the work when I was young, but I do now when I look back upon what I learned through it. I want my children to learn some of the same lessons and to not be selfish, in-debt consumers.

We have extended family here. My parents living next door on the farm is a wonderful thing. It seems so uncommon to find extended families in our culture and society. Yet, that is the model in the scriptures and in many cultures. There is a strength and are great blessings in having an extended family. Our children are being blessed in ways they don’t realize yet just by having their Mammaw and Pappaw  and Uncle Danny living here with them. It’s also something that benefits my parents and Danny. I wish I could’ve grown up with my grandparents in the same way. There is so much more I could’ve learned from them.

I think that every homesteading adventure is unique, because each individual or family interprets and creates it in the ways that make sense to them. We thank God all the time for the opportunity we have to live here, to be together as a family. The are long-term benefits that we haven’t even imagine. Working and playing together, eating meals together, just being together, is incredibly important to us, and we are grateful that it is so.