Why You Should Become A Prepper
In this post, I will demonstrate why every responsible adult should become a prepper.
Let’s look at what has happened.
What to expect next.
See why it has never been more important to become a prepper than right now.
This article is for those that are considering the idea of becoming a prepper. If you’re already a prepper or well on your way to becoming a prepper, good for you. Let this post solidify your decision to become more self-reliant.
Now join in on the conversation and help me convince everyone that a preparedness lifestyle does not mean becoming a doomsday prepper or a hoarder—all completely different animals. Both of those terms are insulting and inaccurate.
If we’ve learned anything at all from the last year, it has to be that tragedy strikes, and no one is coming to help.
A world pandemic like most living adults has never experienced. We had empty store shelves and grocery limits for months, over half a million deaths in the United States alone, and watched our rights degrade with every step.
As the world quarantined and wore masks everywhere, afraid to even visit family, it has witnessed violent protests, massive wildfires, the worst winter storm we’ve had in years (decades for many places), and unprecedented internet hacks.
The US has come close to war, endured another stock market crash, watched a president impeached for the second time during a single term, and had an election so dysfunctional we were the laughingstocks of the world.
We watched big tech and social media urinate on free speech as they squashed competition and anyone that dared oppose their ideology or narrative. And they got away with it.
Government overreach and corruption, murders by our police officers, and widespread riots. Even a public breach of the Capital building as thousands of fellow Americans stormed congress.
So much has happened in the last year I actually had to stop listing them, or that’s what this article would be about. Literally, I left out dozens of serious events. It hurts to leave out the Olympics, Brexit, and even murder hornets. It’s been one wild ride.
As a nation, as a community, the entire world, in fact, has demonstrated its lack of memory when it comes to history. We learn from very little. I wonder if we at least have the ability to learn from very recent history.
That, is why you should become a prepper.
Here’s where I want to avoid scaring you away if you are new to the idea of prepping. Like I already mentioned, I am not a doomsday prepper.
With that said, I’ve had years of observation, and I understand that while the preppers crying wolf every five minutes has hurt our prepping community, there truly are some dire and dangerous possibilities screaming toward us.
It has never been more important to become a prepper than right now.
At the risk of sounding like an alarmist:
The climate is changing alright, but not just the global climate; the entire landscape of our democracy is changing.
Our Constitution is under attack. Our freedom is at risk.
Violence in the streets is a serious issue in many areas and seems to escalate with each passing year.
We see the out-of-control spending with the disastrous potential for our financial stability, perhaps even a financial collapse.
Look for high fuel and energy costs to affect transportation, heating, and our electrical power.
Watch for world government agendas to clash, causing more instability and uncertainty as war looms over volatile regions. Let’s hope we don’t find ourselves living right in the middle of one of those regions.
Nature is changing. While the politicians throw OUR money at it, while the left and right fight over who or what is at fault, WE have to understand OUR part. That means preparing for:
We’ll get into more of the whys and hows in the next steps, but I want you to understand the importance of getting more prepared for now.
It IS NOT the time to panic,
it’s time for a plan.
We’ll cover that as well.
Step by Step.
Become a prepper, so you have clean water the next time there’s a corrupt corporate and government coverup as unsuspecting citizens drink water contaminated with lead.
Become a prepper, so you don’t have to stand in long lines hoping the cashier will allow you to buy both the package of chicken and the package of beef that’s in your cart.
Become a prepper, so you have the gear, PPE, and the ability to protect your family.
Become a prepper so you can avoid feeling utterly exposed to a deadly disease because you have no choice but to go out and find groceries to feed your family.
Become a prepper because you cannot trust the news media. So you can stop obsessing over how much of the news is fake and if anything we are told is actually true. Most of it doesn’t matter when you’re not dependant on their solutions because you have your own.
Become a prepper, so when you hear a government official on TV say, “Please be patient, we’re doing the best we can. We weren’t prepared – no one could see this coming,” you can think, “I saw it coming, and my family is going to be just fine.”
Become a prepper so you can be a source of strength in your family and community with the means to help – not wait for handouts and favors.
Become a prepper so your children and their children can learn to be more self-reliant and less dependent on unreliable systems.
The idea that the government, at least the American government (I’ll stick to the United States here), will come to the rescue is so laughable that I’m embarrassed even to bring it up, but I know some people still believe in fairy tails.
The most terrifying words in the English language are: I’m from the government, and I’m here to help.
Even though the government spent trillions destroying the economy, I mean helping, how many doctors and nurses went without masks and PPE for months?
We had even seen just how inadequate local police and city government are when they literally walked away from riots and protests. Rioters were actually taking over the streets – and holding off local police as they looted and ransacked homes and businesses.
Like the tragedies of the last year, I could go on for pages about the ineptness and utter incompetence of our government, but I want to respect your time.
People panicked.
The government looked the other way.
They lied the entire time.
Let’s never forget that.
People panicked.
The government looked the other way.
They lied the entire time.
Let’s never forget that.
I want to share our personal story from last summer to offer a little context and hopefully some inspiration to why you should become a prepper – if you’re already not a prepper or well on your way.
This is not to gloat or brag – that is not what I’m here for.
Back in April 2020, we had seven people and two dogs living here at our home. Deaths and hospitalizations were getting very bad in our area from covid-19.
On a Friday night, I announced that we were going into lockdown beginning Monday morning. We were self-quarantining until further notice. Anyone that left the house for any reason, for any length of time, would not be let back in. Period.
My oldest grandson had commitments and respectfully moved out temporarily. Everyone else stayed. No one protested. Well, my then eighteen-year-old grandson (My second oldest) had a girlfriend, so there may have been a little protesting. 😉
No one went to work, and there were five of us adults with jobs. No one went to school. No one left home for appointments or groceries. We stayed home. Period. For a month!
It was another six weeks before we stepped foot into a store of any kind. That was ten weeks living only on our preps – food and supplies we stored away for emergencies. Things we bought and stored WAY before there was a pandemic.
While people were on the news fighting over toilet paper, we ate from our garden and made our own bread. We fermented, canned, dehydrated, and we shared.
Basically, nothing changed other than we felt we were on an extended staycation at home. It was fun and virtually stress-free.
We were giving stuff away—food, cleaners, TP, and supplies. We had more than enough. My daughter has a huge heart. She’d see a post on Facebook about a family struggling and put a box of goods on our porch for them to come and get.
I know, I know, OPSEC and all that. You do you, let us be us. We want to be part of the community, not running from it. But that’s just us. As I said, you do you. I respect that.
When no one could find sanitizers and cleaning supplies, we were giving them away.
When hospitals didn’t have PPE and staff was wearing the same masks for days at a time, I was able to take over two hundred N-95 masks to our local clinic.
I gave two boxes of Kydex jumpsuits to our local veterinarian, along with nitrile gloves, surgical masks, and hand sanitiser. That’s was possible because we are preppers.
We gave family not living with us, via the porch pick-up method, toilet paper, disinfecting cleaners, PPE, and food by the box full.
And guess what. We didn’t miss a single payment, go into debt or go without. We paid every bill – on time. I can’t stress enough just how important an emergency fund is. That allowed us to make decisions based on our family’s safety, not how many bills and expenses we had. We are preppers!
We weren’t filling up carts of food and supplies while the shelves were running dry. We didn’t contribute at all to the panic buying and shortages.
We weren’t panicked. We were prepared.
We purchased most of the items in our pantry and supplies months and years before the pandemic. All of it was pre-pandemic supplies. If anything, our prepping allowed others to have what we would have otherwise needed.
Just one final note before I end this article. And it’s so personal I thought I’d never share it, but here I go anyway. It involves my oldest daughter. She was living with us last year, along with her husband and three of my grandsons.
Years ago, she said something to me that stung a little. Okay, it stung a lot. She said,
“Dad, do you really think the world is going to end? Why are you buying all of this food and stuff? It’s crazy”.
That was the sentiment I received from many in my family, although my daughter’s opinion meant more to me. My other kids never mentioned it, and my wife has been 100% supportive of everything I do for over 37 years. But my little girl, wow.
But I pushed on. I continued to build my preps, learn everything I could, try new and bold survival methods, and become more and more self-reliant.
I still have a VERY LONG way to go. I’m not Daniel Boone or Grizzly Adams.
What I am is a proud and thankful prepper. Proud of my family for coming together when we needed one another. Proud of my prepping friends and community for helping others by sharing their skills and knowledge.
I’m thankful for the foresight I was blessed with to prepare. I’m thankful for the ability to make a difference.
I’ve never been wealthy or well-off by any American standard – not financially. It’s been a financial struggle, but I have no regrets.
On that note, I don’t want my story to overwhelm you. It took many years to accumulate that much food and supplies, and honestly, you probably don’t need to. It’s just my nature to go a little overboard – I can admit that.
Here’s the icing on the prepper’s cake. My daughter made my day with this Facebook post just before we went into self-quarantine.
Stay safe. Stay prepared.
Hawkins Out.
Nice, Brian.
I’d like to think that the whole Covid experience will have coaxed a few more people to see the value in being prepared. It seems to have converted a batch of people. Baking via sourdough became popular again. People grew gardens to the point that there weren’t enough canning supplies to cover it. Even baby chicks got scarce as lots more people started raising chickens. it would be nice if these new converts to preparedness would stick with it and not lapse back into the old just-in-time lifestyle. As you said, there are still plenty of things that can go wrong. They don’t have to be ‘doomsday’ to be a major pain in the pantry. I hope your article gets shared with plenty of just-in-timers while there’s still time to prepare and they’ll ‘see the light’ like your daughter did.
— Mic
Thanks, Mic, I agree. I hope we see even more people come to their senses after this last winter storm. There’s no shortage of SHTF events, that’s for sure.
Major pain in the pantry? Where do you come up with cool stuff like that? You should consider becoming an author or something. 😉
Excellent article!
Thanks, Barb 🙂
Brian,
I know its frustrating to explain the prepper mindset to someone who wears rose colored glasses. It has taken “saving the day” many times if even on the smallest scale to convert many in my family. At least they stopped with the Hes a crazy prepper comments. I like to explain it as Im getting ready for the storm. When they ask what storm I reply the one I dont see coming!!
Jeff
That’s a solid approach, Jeff. Everyone can relate to a storm and weathering a storm covers an awful lot.
I haven’t been getting the crazy prepper look lately either. When you offer someone something they needed but all of a sudden they couldn’t find it in the stores, I believe they have a little “Ah-Ha” moment. Sadly, that moment doesn’t always last long. I feel a duty to keep reminding everyone. Eventually, it’ll stick for some. I truly believe the prepared lifestyle is the best lifestyle because the level of stress is drastically reduced.
I am so glad to read what you’ve shared, Brian. I’m learning a lot as I go forth in preparedness. It’s nice to connect with others on this journey of being prepared.
I am encouraged at your daughter sharing what she did about you being prepared. My grown kids/grandkids still look at me like I’m nuts and what I share appears to go over their head or they are pretending to hear me.
I do believe there is value in showing kindness to others and it speaks volumes. I used to be one that runs at the mouth when I should button it but learning new things about not inciting anger and acts of kindness and giving to others even if they don’t know.
I have a near neighbor who steals from my garden, steals my outdoor cameras and has a dog that comes over to the fence and terrorizes my dogs or at very least tries to get them on to fight. Yet they have two little girls I adore.
Sometimes when I have extra juice and milk my daughters brings me from the schools they teach at, I go drop it off on their doorstep. Or even an extra pair of winter boots. They have numerous cats running around and I bring in pregnant mamas and let them wean babies before I take all off to be adopted. The adults in that household don’t give a hoot about me but gotta at least try.
I have to keep to being prepared but don’t have to be an arse if not necessary.
Thanks, Cindy, our kids are on a different level right now. They’ll be saying the same things about their kids and grandkids eventually.
I’m sorry you’re going through that with your neighbor. I have no idea how I’d handle that but stealing is not only criminal, it’s dangerous. That’s a tough spot to be in. It sounds like you have a good heart but I hope it doesn’t get any worse than it is. I haven’t had to deal with anything like that.
I followed you on MeWe, it’s a cool idea to use that for a website link. Great for building connections. 🙂
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