I began to feel despair coming from many of the people in the camp. It seemed they needed direction and help. I felt that if I was going to survive this possible future that I had to learn what was needed to live in this camp. I had to teach myself as much as possible so that I could one day share it with these people. In doing that, then my own future existence would be assured and easier too.
The problem was that I was a young woman of the 80s and nobody I knew was doing the things I wanted to learn. There was nobody to help and I didn't at that time really know WHAT I needed to learn. In the past when I wanted to learn something, I always relied on books. They had never let me down and that is where I decided to start this time too.
Among other things, I wanted to learn to garden so I could grow food. So, we got a tiller and plowed up a piece of the backyard and I stuck seeds and plants in the ground. That first garden DID miraculously grow food despite my ignorance but not enough or as well as it could have done. I needed to LEARN to garden. I began to read and work on that piece of yard and it did grow better every year. While I wasn't a great gardener I did think I was a decent gardener even though there was so much more I needed to learn.
I decided to plant fruit trees at the farm so that they would be big and strong by the time we moved there. I bought apple trees. We dug the holes and I stuck them in the ground and thought I had accomplished something. Over the next week at the farm the deer and cows destroyed most of the trees. They seriously pruned the others but I still foolishly thought they had a chance. Unfortunately, the few sticks that the wildlife left didn't stand a chance. The summer heat and drought showed up as usual and I didn't water them properly. Those poor trees gave it their best but eventually they couldn't withstand the harsh conditions and neglect. Clearly I needed to learn more about growing, planting and caring for fruit trees.
I changed course and decided to plant fruit trees on my acre in the city. I bought trees, dug holes and planted them in it. I still didn't change much about my fruit growing skills but at least this time they did survive since I could water and protect them. I added a few trees and plants every year and eventually I had peach, plum, fig, blueberry, raspberry, pear and apple among other fruit trees growing. They weren't producing much fruit but they were growing strong and healthy. I had read that the first fruits needed to be removed so that the tree would grow stronger roots that didn't need as much tender care. So I sadly plucked the fruits that I had worked so hard to produce. I could tell by the way the trees responded that It helped.
I began to look at the rest of the yard and all the grass that had to be watered and mowed. I decided that I couldn't eat grass or flowers and so I began removing plants that weren't edible and replacing them with better choices. I
> found out that daylillies, dahlias, hostas and other ornamentals were edible and so I kept them and encouraged them. Azaleas which I had in abundance were poisonous so we removed them and I planted fruit bushes in their place. I planted herbs and vegetables in the flower beds. I expanded the garden and began to plant more things there too. I found gardening books to help including square foot gardening and I learned more about growing. Back then there weren't as many books on growing more in smaller places but i hunted out all I could find. There was nothing available on edible landscaping so I painstakingly researched the plants in my area one at a time at the library. As the years passed I became a not so bad gardener. I still wasn't an expert but I was better then when I started.
I decided that if I was going to grow all those foods that I also needed to learn to preserve them. I was a good cook but I knew absolutely nothing about preserving food. My mother had never canned anything or grown a good garden and I didn't have a clue. So, I again turned to books. I had no problem with freezing food because I grew up with a well stocked freezer. We were given a used freezer and I wasted no time in filling it up. I thankfully found out early that my vegetables needed to be pressure canned. I knew that freezing wasn't a long term solution. I did a little research and I decided I would learn to can. I had saved some coupons similar to greenbax stamps but from another company. I sent away for their catalog and saw that they had a presto pressure canner that I could get with the coupons if I just paid shipping. So I sent off my order and waited for my canner.
It wasn't long before my canner showed up and I opened it up and pulled out the instruction manual. I spent the first evening reading that book and the very next day I decided to can some field peas from the garden. I had never heard the stories of exploding pressure canners because no one I knew had one. I bought a box of jars from the discount store then filled them just like the canner manual instructed. I fearlessly followed all the directions and in no time I was finished with two full loads of beautiful field peas. I had 18 pint jars lined up like little soldiers and I was pleased with my accomplishment. Before long I was canning everything. I worked backwards from what other people usually do and I taught myself to can jams, jellies, pickles and relishes in a water bath canner too. There was no stopping me and I began to buy and fill jars as fast as the food could grow. Jars were very cheap back then and I bought them by the cart full. I had shelves full of jars filled with food I had grown and I began to understand more about food storage and its importance.
While I was growing and canning at my city homestead I still saw the camp in my vision. I still saw bits and pieces of the lives there and they were always what kept me going. I mentally and physically walked through that camp many times through the years. I knew that I was somehow on the right track but that I still had so much to learn. I began to think that there weren't enough hours in the days and weeks to learn everything that I needed to know. I saw that there was so much that I didn't know and I became determined to learn it all. I saw problems like food shortages, food spoilage, poor food nutrition. I also saw unhealthy livestock that wasn't fit to eat and poorly slaughtered carcasses that were going to waste. I saw dirty bodies and dishes that needed soap and water. I realized that even all their combined knowledge was limited and I wondered what had brought these people to this point where they were short of supplies, skills and joy. It seemed that these future people had lost the ability to care for their own basic needs and I knew they would not make it if they didn't learn.
So, as I walked through the camp and interacted in the vision, I observed the glimpses of want and need. With that information I began to see more things I needed to learn. I saw the woman with the long ponytail trying to teach some other people how to prepare a meal. I reached out and showed her and the rest what they needed to do and in her tired eyes I saw gratitude. I also felt her saying to me "you'll do". Somehow that felt like the highest praise.
The problem was that I was a young woman of the 80s and nobody I knew was doing the things I wanted to learn. There was nobody to help and I didn't at that time really know WHAT I needed to learn. In the past when I wanted to learn something, I always relied on books. They had never let me down and that is where I decided to start this time too.
Among other things, I wanted to learn to garden so I could grow food. So, we got a tiller and plowed up a piece of the backyard and I stuck seeds and plants in the ground. That first garden DID miraculously grow food despite my ignorance but not enough or as well as it could have done. I needed to LEARN to garden. I began to read and work on that piece of yard and it did grow better every year. While I wasn't a great gardener I did think I was a decent gardener even though there was so much more I needed to learn.
I decided to plant fruit trees at the farm so that they would be big and strong by the time we moved there. I bought apple trees. We dug the holes and I stuck them in the ground and thought I had accomplished something. Over the next week at the farm the deer and cows destroyed most of the trees. They seriously pruned the others but I still foolishly thought they had a chance. Unfortunately, the few sticks that the wildlife left didn't stand a chance. The summer heat and drought showed up as usual and I didn't water them properly. Those poor trees gave it their best but eventually they couldn't withstand the harsh conditions and neglect. Clearly I needed to learn more about growing, planting and caring for fruit trees.
I changed course and decided to plant fruit trees on my acre in the city. I bought trees, dug holes and planted them in it. I still didn't change much about my fruit growing skills but at least this time they did survive since I could water and protect them. I added a few trees and plants every year and eventually I had peach, plum, fig, blueberry, raspberry, pear and apple among other fruit trees growing. They weren't producing much fruit but they were growing strong and healthy. I had read that the first fruits needed to be removed so that the tree would grow stronger roots that didn't need as much tender care. So I sadly plucked the fruits that I had worked so hard to produce. I could tell by the way the trees responded that It helped.
I began to look at the rest of the yard and all the grass that had to be watered and mowed. I decided that I couldn't eat grass or flowers and so I began removing plants that weren't edible and replacing them with better choices. I
> found out that daylillies, dahlias, hostas and other ornamentals were edible and so I kept them and encouraged them. Azaleas which I had in abundance were poisonous so we removed them and I planted fruit bushes in their place. I planted herbs and vegetables in the flower beds. I expanded the garden and began to plant more things there too. I found gardening books to help including square foot gardening and I learned more about growing. Back then there weren't as many books on growing more in smaller places but i hunted out all I could find. There was nothing available on edible landscaping so I painstakingly researched the plants in my area one at a time at the library. As the years passed I became a not so bad gardener. I still wasn't an expert but I was better then when I started.
I decided that if I was going to grow all those foods that I also needed to learn to preserve them. I was a good cook but I knew absolutely nothing about preserving food. My mother had never canned anything or grown a good garden and I didn't have a clue. So, I again turned to books. I had no problem with freezing food because I grew up with a well stocked freezer. We were given a used freezer and I wasted no time in filling it up. I thankfully found out early that my vegetables needed to be pressure canned. I knew that freezing wasn't a long term solution. I did a little research and I decided I would learn to can. I had saved some coupons similar to greenbax stamps but from another company. I sent away for their catalog and saw that they had a presto pressure canner that I could get with the coupons if I just paid shipping. So I sent off my order and waited for my canner.
It wasn't long before my canner showed up and I opened it up and pulled out the instruction manual. I spent the first evening reading that book and the very next day I decided to can some field peas from the garden. I had never heard the stories of exploding pressure canners because no one I knew had one. I bought a box of jars from the discount store then filled them just like the canner manual instructed. I fearlessly followed all the directions and in no time I was finished with two full loads of beautiful field peas. I had 18 pint jars lined up like little soldiers and I was pleased with my accomplishment. Before long I was canning everything. I worked backwards from what other people usually do and I taught myself to can jams, jellies, pickles and relishes in a water bath canner too. There was no stopping me and I began to buy and fill jars as fast as the food could grow. Jars were very cheap back then and I bought them by the cart full. I had shelves full of jars filled with food I had grown and I began to understand more about food storage and its importance.
While I was growing and canning at my city homestead I still saw the camp in my vision. I still saw bits and pieces of the lives there and they were always what kept me going. I mentally and physically walked through that camp many times through the years. I knew that I was somehow on the right track but that I still had so much to learn. I began to think that there weren't enough hours in the days and weeks to learn everything that I needed to know. I saw that there was so much that I didn't know and I became determined to learn it all. I saw problems like food shortages, food spoilage, poor food nutrition. I also saw unhealthy livestock that wasn't fit to eat and poorly slaughtered carcasses that were going to waste. I saw dirty bodies and dishes that needed soap and water. I realized that even all their combined knowledge was limited and I wondered what had brought these people to this point where they were short of supplies, skills and joy. It seemed that these future people had lost the ability to care for their own basic needs and I knew they would not make it if they didn't learn.
So, as I walked through the camp and interacted in the vision, I observed the glimpses of want and need. With that information I began to see more things I needed to learn. I saw the woman with the long ponytail trying to teach some other people how to prepare a meal. I reached out and showed her and the rest what they needed to do and in her tired eyes I saw gratitude. I also felt her saying to me "you'll do". Somehow that felt like the highest praise.