If Ye Are Prepared...
In the summer of 2002 my family moved to south Texas. My husband was working across the border in Mexico everyday. Our daughter was about to turn 3, and I was very pregnant with our first son. The news was full of reports of potential dirty bomb attacks and I was anxious and unsettled (and looking back, probably very hormonal), and I felt constant uneasiness. I remembered the scripture in Doctrine & Covenants 38:30 that reads, “but if ye are prepared, ye shall not fear.” I took it to heart and realized that in order to quell my fear I needed to do something, to actively engage in a project. That’s when I built my first 72 hr kit. It was bulky and did require a Little Tikes wagon to transport, but hey, it was a start.
Since then my preparedness efforts have waxed and waned depending on our situation. Small living spaces and a student budget weren’t particularly conducive to food storage when we were living in Boston for graduate school. But then the time came when we decided to move back to California – the state where we had been living on Sept 11, 2001.
At that time we had been in process of moving out of California to Pennsylvania. My husband was already working in Pennsylvania and was scheduled to fly home the evening of Sept 11th. Of course he didn’t make it back to California that night. The movers were coming the very next day to pack up our house and ship out our cars. Our daughter was 2 years old and had no comprehension of the events of the day, but wanted to watch the footage over and over again – she found it exciting, like it was a fireworks display. I, however, was almost in a panic, trying to reconcile just how much our world had changed that morning and how my sense of peace and security were completely wiped out, all while trying to figure out how I was going to accomplish my husband’s extensive honey-do list before the movers came. Thankfully there was a young couple in our ward (church congregation) - the husband had been sent home from his job in one of the downtown L.A. towers, and the wife was my daughter’s nursery leader. Thanks to them, we didn’t have to spend that awful day alone, AND we were fully ready when the movers came the next morning.
The idea of moving back to California unleashed many of the feelings I had tried to bury after that experience - feelings of helplessness and isolation - and so once settled back in the Golden State I jumped into emergency preparedness and food storage as a way to reduce the possibility of having to feel that way again.
We’ve been back here almost 6 years now. We’ve got a couple more kids, a year+ supply of food, 2+ months of water, and paper goods and personal supplies galore. Our yard is full of fruit trees and I’ve got a healthy little garden. We’re also focusing on preparing our bodies to withstand the physical and psychological struggles a disaster would bring. While I’m still nervous that there’s so much to do, and so little time in which to do it all, I’m confident that my efforts to prepare myself and my family will never go to waste.
Comments
Everyone can do a little something to prepare or an emergency.
Thanks for sharing your experiences.
You are an inspiration.
great article!
You are such a good example!
You can never be too prepared!
I always learn so much from you!
thanks for sharing!
love the article
you are awesome
thanks for sharing
wise counsel
i love "if ye are prepared, ye shall not fear"!
good article
great information
thanks for being a good example
very insightful
be prepared!!
Thanks for sharing your experience!
Great article!
good advice...
interesting ideas...
Thanks for sharing your experience...
practical advice...
thanks for sharing!
You r awesome
Great information.
We all should be prepared for emergencies.
Experience is the best teacher.
Thanks for taking the time to share.
Need to store more water!
Thanks for sharing that story, it inspires me to be more serious about being prepared.
Love the article!
I always learn so much from you. Thank you for sharing!
You are a shining example!
Thanks for sharing your experience.
Mothers have to prepare for their families. You are an inspiration.
Thanks for sharing.
Thanks for sharing your personal story.
You are an inspiration to get prepared
great advice thanks for sharing
good job. keep up the good work
Well done. Good stuff to know
Makes you think.
Great story. Makes me want to be better prepared
Thanks for sharing
"Doctrines & Covenents" is a new one on me, but good article.
Nice to know people like you.
I'm interested and want to know more.
Things we should all think about.
You are such a pro.
Fun name Preppers and you are one.
Being prepared is the name of the game. Thanks.
Great story.
You're such a great example to us all.
Thanks for sharing your story.
You're a great example (:
Thanks for always sharing your knowledge
This was an inspiring article. Thanks!
You are the model of preparedness.
Great job everyone should do this
I am going to see about doing the same
Being prepared is not an easy task there is so much to be prepared for a length of time
Your article really got me to think what would happen to my family if a disaster did happen. thanks for the article
Great article every one needs to read this
Good job, Aunt Cecily!
Way to set an example.
Thanks for setting a great example for me
After the earthquake, I need to really help my family stock up on flashlights. I think they are mostly my fault for losing them!
Thank you for sharing this information with us.
Great job! Hope you win.
Fingers crossed for you.
Briana told me about your article. Great info.
Voting for you #2
Voting for you #3
Voting for you #4
Voting for you #5
Very relative to today's world....man I am so not prepared! Great article!!!
Keep up the great worK! Post some photo of all your efforts so I can get an idea of what I need to work towards!! :)
Love it, Cecily. Nicely done!
I know where we're coming when the big one hits...!
Honeyville rocks...!
We're working on it...
What a great adventure!
Awesome
great!!
Enlightening article
really good
thanks for the info!
thank you!
great
very interesting info
awesome
thanks for the good info
i liked this article
good example
thank you
Great article
I need to work on this more
I'm glad you're prepared :)
What a great example
Great job!
loved it!
i cant wait to to start a food storage of my own
i can see why it is so important to be prepared
wonderful article!
good job!
learned a lot
really interesting
good luck!
i hope you win!
it is always good to be prepaired
Wow! It's amazing how such actions can teach you a life lesson. You learned how to cope and prepare in the face of adversity.
We can take a lesson from you on being properly prepared, especially those of us that live in California.
This also points out the importance of letting others provide us with a helping hand. In a society where it's all-for-one sometimes, we need to remember to rely on our neignbors too.
What a great example this provides all of us, and showing what we can all do to prepare - from growing a garden to stocking food and water for 1+ year!
This inspires me to get prepared. Obviously one case of water and a few canned goods isn't sufficient - although it's a start. Thanks for sharing your preparedness plans!
I am feeling very unprepared!!! I need to get with it!
Nice article!
Great job Cec. I feel so well informed now.
You are an inspiration!
thanks for all the helpful tips you've shared along the way...
Love the inventive storage ideas you have come up with.
Time for me to take a look at my 72 hr. kits again!
You walk the walk, not just talk the talk!
You are looking super fit! Nice preparation for the "big one!" :-)
Enjoyed the article.
You're a good example of getting prepared.
Good job!
Best of luck!
Good article
Never too early or late to get prepared
Liked the article
Good luck!
Really good thoughts
oh wow!
thank you for sharing this, I am going to make some changes right away!
Everyone could use a little more preparedness.
you go girl
this has helped me become so much more aware of what i should do
I need to check our supplies!
A good reminder to help keep that uneasy filling of uncertainty at bay.
very resourceful
i wil share this with my friends
something everyone should be aware of
Can you come and work on my food storage for me:)
this is something that should be known in every home
A good read.
fingers crossed
i bet you have a great chance of winning
look at all these comments so far!
I need to evaluate our situation.
Time to restock
I think it awesome that you are doing so much to be prepared. Once we get settled in Philly I will get on the ball!
Best wishes.
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