“Whenever I feel really alone, I just sit and stare into the night sky. I’ve always thought that one of those stars is my star, and I know that my star will always be there for me. Like a comforting voice saying, “Don’t give up, kid.”
– Charlie Brown
Two weeks after Australia declared the coronavirus would become a pandemic and 47 days after the first case in Australia was detected in Melbourne, the World Health Organisation made it official… we were living with lockdown or stay at home orders.
And since that 1st day – Friday 13 March 2020, COVID-19 pandemic rules and regulations have upended our lives in innumerable ways. I won’t try to summarize them here. Suffice to say: Many of us may feel a bit different about life than we did 2 years ago.
We thought it would be over in a year bring on 2021! and now another year on and we have entered a new phase, with Omicron subvariant BA.2 rapidly dominating, spreading leading some countries back into lockdowns and we are all dealing with this continuing pandemic in different ways, living in denial, being scared, angry, laissez-faire, confused or just being worried.
“I’m already tired tomorrow.”
– Charlie Brown
And now we along with the pandemic we are watching and listening in horror as people’s lives are shattered, destroyed by bombs and floods. This has all lead to fuel topping $2 per lt. and we are becoming more aware that we need to plan how to navigate the rising cost of living and the threat of a global war…. I was starting to feel overwhelmed by it all. So, I sat and thought of all the things I cannot control, but also slowly the realisation that there are many ways where we can make a difference to our wellbeing in the coming year.
Firstly, make growing even a small amount of food part of your daily life. It takes years to build your soil and your skill set to the point where you are able to produce a reliable, abundant crop. But you can start a few potted tomatoes and herbs.
Think seriously about incorporating fruit providing plants into your garden. One easy way to produce a reliable crop of food is to plant food bearing trees, bushes, and vines. Many edible plants can be stunningly beautiful in your garden. Take an apple tree for instance. It can be pruned into a wide variety of shapes and sizes. It is absolutely gorgeous in the spring when the blossoms emerge. Plant berries then you can eat $5 worth for breakfast… a little decadence can go along way to keeping spirits up.
Many medicinal herbs such as lavender, chamomile, feverfew, hyssop, bee balm, and coneflowers provide beauty and variety to the landscape while secretly doubling as herbal remedies.
Prepare to Provide for Yourself or Do Without
During times of uncertainty, it is important that you do everything that you can to take care of your needs or be prepared to do without. (Yes, you can live without coffee!) In addition to the resources you have stored, you may need to be creative and make do with what you can make yourself. Create a personal reference library with valuable books that you can refer to when Google fails you. I will list my favourite go to books next month.
“What if today we were just grateful for everything?”
– Charlie Brown
Learn Basic Skills
With cost of living increasing, basic skills will become even more valuable. The ability to do your own home and car repairs (or other services) will save you much-needed money. Baking bread from scratch, growing fruit and vegetables, mending torn jeans, fixing a leaky tap, repairing a broken lock, fermenting vegetables, and bottling peaches are just a few examples of basic skills that will save money and improve your quality of life when times are tough.
What skills do you have that you may be able to barter with? Perhaps it is time to learn a new hobby that will help you develop important basic skills.
Prepare to Share
So, you are prepared to take care of yourselves and your family during times of crisis. However, no matter how well you are prepared you may need help from others in order to survive due to circumstances beyond your control. This will be true for all of us. Be prepared to reach out to others in need and I hope there is another kind person somewhere who is willing and able to care for you and those you love.
Worry will not change the future, but positive action now can help mitigate the hardships that may come our way. So, my action plan is to do the best we can to take reasonable steps to prepare for future challenges and then we can plan to enjoy each day to the fullest.
And if we have learnt one thing these past 2 years, it must be that the status co can change very quickly so we need to Hope for the Best and Prepare for the Worst
My life isn’t perfect, but I’m thankful for everything I have.”
– Charlie Brown
