Choosing the homesteading and prepper way of life

I expect you are sick and tired of hearing about the current financial climate of the UK and I guess the majority of Europe. Unfortunately though it is real life and it is one of the reasons so many people are turning to the homesteading way of life. We as a family have been homesteading for quite some time now but I've noticed many more people interested in learning more about homesteading as a way of life. 

The main difference between a home and a homestead, I think, is those who live a 'homestead' life take the time to do things for themselves whereas those who simply live in their home opt to have things done for them. This is an over simplification, I'm aware, but it is a quick way to try and explain one of the core differences. 

There will be some who argue that they don't have time to homestead, that they work long hours and so they cannot cook from scratch, grow their own food or preserve food. That is their choice, personally though we as a family are extremely busy. Both adults in our home work full time and I run my own business yet I make time to do things that would be considered 'homesteading' because to me they are important, I also make time to teach my children the skills so they can do things for themselves in the future. 

I could choose to spend my time doing other things, going out socialising or doing one of my many hobbies but I've chosen instead to invest my time in learning skills that I feel will benefit my family in the long term. I'm glad I have too, especially now with the way the world is. 

There was a time that my friends and family thought my 'prepping' was funny, they would laugh at me for overly preparing for the future. They often asked what I was prepping for, a zombie attack? The end of the world? I was never prepping for either of those scenarios, I was preparing my home and my family for what is happening right now! A time where costs are rising faster and higher than income. Where it is more difficult to get hold of basic items that are used day to day. I don't consider my prepping something odd or something unusual, in fact I think it is something every family should be doing. 

Obviously right now things are difficult for everyone and financially most people are struggling. Right now isn't a great time to start prepping, a great time would have been months or years ago before this all happened. If you had of purchased a few extra tins of soup, bags of pasta or any long life food items back a long time ago before prices sky rocketed you'd be in the position now where you wouldn't be worrying quite so much about how you would be feeding the family in the month ahead. I expect there was a time you could afford the latest technology, a meal out with friends or a holiday abroad. If you'd instead chosen to invest a little time in prepping, making sure your cupboards were stocked with basic essentials, the situation right now wouldn't be quite so bad as it is. This might sound unfair to say and there will be situations where people were already struggling and so couldn't afford to prep however in most cases I would argue people could have done more to prepare themselves. It just wasn't the done thing, it wasn't popular and it wasn't trendy. It appeared silly and unnecessary. Not any more. 

So moving forward, what could you be doing to be more prepared in future? 

- Learn how to forage, grow, cook and preserve food. Even if you have extremely limited space and time. It is worth it. If you learn how to do it on a budget, without investing silly amounts of money on posh equipment it can and will save you money. 
- Stock up on basic long life food and drink items that you use and consume. Don't bother buying things you don't use. Start by buying one more that you'll use in the week ahead and go from there, build up a stock slowly and remember to rotate your stock. 

- Layer your clothing and turn down the heating. We as a society have become overly reliant, I feel, on central heating. My family hasn't had central heating in our house for over 8 years. I expect it has saved us thousands of pounds. I completely understand there are some vulnerable people, elderly and babies for example, that will rely on it. However there are a lot of people who turn it on at the slightly chill in the air when they could simply put on a jumper or an extra pair of socks. 
- Learn basic skills that will be useful around the home. Sewing and repairing clothing and fabric items. First aid and herbal medicine (for things like colds and headaches, obviously not serious medical conditions) How to cook and preserve food. Foraging and/or growing your own food. Any skills that might be useful to you and your family. 

There are so many other things I could recommend but I will leave it there for fear of sounding preachy. Please know that I am not saying any of these things to sound unkind or to suggest that homesteading and prepping is the right way of life for everyone. I'm just recommending that people consider looking into it, consider opening their minds to it and stop judging those negatively for choosing to live as preppers and homesteaders. 

Have a think, maybe give it a go and who knows, you might actually enjoy homesteading and prepping.