Be Prepared For What?

Real adulthood is the result of two qualities: self discipline and self reliance.

The process of developing them together in balance is called maturing. J.W. Jepson

We are all familiar with the Boy Scouts slogan “Be Prepared” but, be prepared for what? Well … anything -- anything from annual severe weather to natural disasters, power outages to terrorism, civil unrest to major internet failures. In short, any serious problem that could disrupt our normal lives for an extended period of time. A current example of such a problem - the instability California’s Orville Dam, caused the evacuation of over 200,000 people in the Orville area. After years of drought, who would have guessed? As one resident said: “The lake, that for five decades has brought residents holiday fireworks and salmon festivals, could now bring disaster.”

Right now, all over the world, people are being forced to deal with some form of emergency. Hardly a week goes by without news reports of a natural disaster or emergency leaving people without services or even forcing them out of their homes. And yet here we sit (well, most of us) reading about it, procrastinating or feeling complacent, thinking; “It will never happen to me”.

Yet the possibility that it could happen to you is obviously on your mind because you’re reading this! So, ask yourself; “What would you do?” And this question refers to “you” in a collective sense in that “YOU” includes your “FAMILY”. So, . . . what you would do if, very suddenly, your home had no power, no water, no communication, no heat and no immediate help from any outside agencies? Would you be ready to spend 72 hours or more relying on your own resources while you wait for utilities to be restored or some form of emergency relief to arrive? What would you eat if you were unable to cook on the stove in your home? What would you do if you were forced to leave your home and there were no available shelters or places to stay? Do you know how to care for injuries when medical help is not available? Do you have the necessary first aid supplies and medications for those who may need them should medical help not arrive for hours or even days? These are just a few of the questions you need to ask yourself, to answer truthfully and ultimately be able to answer “Yes”, to consider yourself and your family “prepared”.

Emergency preparedness can be overwhelming and certainly at times a bit frightening, but it needn't be. It can also appear to be very expensive, which can cause us to put it off or simply ignore it. But that needn’t be the case either. The purpose of the Self-Reliance Preparedness Planner is to help you weave your way through the preparedness maze to assist you in becoming self-reliant, and to do so at a very low cost.

We hope you re-visit the site to learn more and that future, articles and information in the "Self Reliance Preparedness Planner" provide you with the tools to become as self-reliant as you wish - allowing you to sleep better at night.

Self Reliance a Topic That Never Goes out of Style

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