Thursday, June 12, 2008

One Small Plot of Ground Can Make a Difference

I'm a great fan of the Dervaes family of The Path To Freedom website. I was a fan way back before they got national attention, before the website was so slick and professional, and before they became a brand. I don't imagine I'll ever accomplish any of those things, but I do hope to accomplish at least 80% self-sufficiency within the next five years.

Right now, I'm working full time to survive, and survival it is. I make only $10 an hour in a time when gas is costing me more than food. It's becoming increasingly difficult to provide myself with a healthy diet, having instead to rely on two-for-one packaged, pre-processed foods to stay alive. My health has been deteriorating for some time now, and I know it's because of my diet, but what can I do, when the cost of fruits and veggies is so high now?

What I can try to do is grow some of my own. I didn't think of it as "homesteading" at the time, but I've already planted over a dozen fruit trees in my yard. I used to have a garden every year, but that stopped when some health problems put me out of commission for awhile. Living alone, it's very hard to manage everyday living with bad health, much less try to tackle a self-sufficiency project!

Most of the problems that prevented me from growing that garden are behind me now, and I'm determined to turn my passion for simple living into a lifestyle. I hope that as I go along, I can inspire some to follow at least a portion of my path in their own lives. I know everyone cannot be the Dervaes, and I don't plan to be either, actually. I don't plan to raise livestock, because it's forbidden where I live, but I do plan to grow my fruits and veggies, and make a partial living off of the land I have.

It will be very hard work, and I'll have to make some tough choices sometimes, but I will use my reader's suggestions and support to sustain me.

Thank you for visiting, and feel free to comment.

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