Destiny Survival

            Here’s another set of activities for the family to consider doing together.

            How are your food preservation skills?  Practice up by choosing an item that is in season, such as strawberries for example, then figure out various ways to preserve them, like freezing, making fruit leather, etc.  Try buying tomatoes at the farmer’s market, then drying them and keeping them in jars of olive oil.

            Someone passed on this next idea to me, and it has merit; but I want to urge caution.  If you’re a city dweller, maybe you and your children already know how to travel safely on city bus routs, but this activity could present some challenges.  Plan wisely and be careful.  Here it is.  Have a scavenger hunt by bus.  Come up with several locations around your city that are accessible by bus, like the library, museums, and so on, and have each person see how quickly they can get to all of the locations, then back home.  Figure out a way to document each location such as taking a picture, getting GPS coordinates, getting a promotional brochure, or a simple thing like picking up a napkin from a local restaurant.  If you want to do this on a smaller scale, this is a fun activity to do at a local mall.  Your children will learn how to follow directions, be resourceful, and cooperate with one another as they scavenge for designated items.

            Have you thought of starting a preparedness group? Invite like-minded friends over for a potluck picnic and suggest a six week trial period for a community preparedness group. Each person or family would be responsible for setting the location and the assignment for each weekly meeting.  For example, one week the group may focus on first aid, another week on the bug out bag, one week on orienteering, and so on. 

            Now, I’ll be the first to admit that this is hard to do.  Survival Sam and I had good intentions on meeting with our friends Duane and Diane once a month for a little survival party, but we’ve only gotten together a couple of times.  Assuming you can find friends who will do this with you, finding the time is a challenge.  If once a week is too often, try once every other week, or once a month.  Whether you want to try new products or work your way through a survival manual, it’s something that’s worth doing, if you possibly can.

            My final suggestion this week is to go to the library or local book store and get the information you need to plan for a summer hike or backpacking trip. Set a date for the hike, then get prepared (physically.  Round up the needed supplies, then go!  Infite another family along if you like.

            You might also want to subscribe to a magazine about taking hikes and wilderness adventures. 

            See you next week.

Click here for part 2.