Five Ways Our Ancestors Were “Sustainable” Before the Word Became Green
We hear the word “sustainability” often from our liberal friends as they propose one unnecessary thing after another that ends up taking away our right to live as we choose.
They take their cause du jour – whether it’s global warming (or climate change, they can’t decide) or acceptable levels of pollution or which bathroom people should use – and try to shove their ideals down people’s throats.
They cite the “latest scientific study” (which is usually disproven by the next scientific study) and use it to decide what’s right and what’s wrong, then try to make conservatives feel like Neanderthals if we disagree.
(They also endlessly preach tolerance, but then refuse to grant it to those who disagree with them. But that’s a subject for another day.)
The word “sustainability” itself is not bad. We should definitely engage in practices that have positive effects in the long-term and which take into consideration how our actions are going to affect our children, grandchildren, great-grandchildren, etc.
In fact, many of the people who helped make this country great, including our great-grandparents, were all about sustainability. How? Let’s look at five ways:
Food.
They grew their own fruits and vegetables – free of pesticides, herbicides and additives – and when they did have to buy certain items, they relied on what was in season and available locally. And, of course, they cooked from scratch using whole foods.
Clothing.
They made many of their own clothing items, then handed them down when their children outgrew them. Once those items wore out, they were either re-knit into other garments or used for cleaning rags.
Household items.
Many household items were made at home, including tools. When an item didn’t work well anymore, they fixed it or had someone else fix it, rather than purchasing a new one. If it was unfixable, they’d figure out a way to repurpose it.
Houses.
They used commonsense methods to heat and cool their homes, including fireplaces, open windows at night and keeping draperies open or closed depending on the weather. Houses were kept smaller to conserve materials, and clothes were washed in cold water.
Landscapes.
Like homes, yards were smaller to limit the amount of time and energy needed to maintain them. They used the area surrounding their homes to grow crops, store compost and give their animals the space they needed.
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To your survival,
Frank Bates
P.S. We would do well to follow some of the sustainable practices our great-grandparents utilized. They always kept themselves as prepared for an uncertain future as possible.
I agree with all of you. I’m 83 and healthy, working my own stock on my ranch and have worked and saved all my life. I make my own decisions and am grateful each day for blessings, challenges and just being alive. I see what so many throw away or refuse because it is not good enough for them. I don’t judge or try to change anyone. I just live my life as I was taught and try to give more than I get. I’ve seen the greedy politicians take, lie and cheat. They all end up in the swamp. I have faith in Donald Trump and believe he knows and cares about us. Yes, John, America will be great again if we all support him and don’t listen to FAKE MEDIA.
Mom grew up in the depression. I learned to compost, open presents carefully & save the paper,ribbon & bows for another time. Wash the tin foil and reuse. save string & rubber bands. Shredded newspaper becomes mulch, or Sunday comics can become colorful wrapping paper or a child’s kite. Old nylons become paint strainers. A beef roast was divided and made into stew another day, and the other piece into hash & the bones into soup. Old sheets were made into dust rags, and old towels into wash cloths or pot holders. Pieces of cloth were braided into rugs.
I feel sad for the generations that have not been taught how to survive without the internet. The ones who would have no idea what to do should the power go out for an extended period of time. Thankfully I have taught my children how to survive, but not everyone has.
The ability to garden, can, dehydrate and purify water should be taught to every child instead of how to live as a single parent. ( yea that one shocked me too)
It scares me that our future leaders are coming from such a self absorbed generation.
Good points, Shannon. That’s why we keep preaching self-reliance. It’s the best way to live.
Stumbled onto this blog while looking up other things. Since I am new here, I will keep it short.
My parents grew up during the Depression, and lived through WWII. Dad in the Army and Mom working in the city. I grew up on a small farm where nothing was thrown out or wasted. You either used it up, or wore it out beyond any repair.
The other thing was you worked or you didn’t eat.
Even today, I still try to get it through to my kids and grandkids that you never waste food. Nor is everything disposable. Not trying to be “green” or whatever the term is this week. Just being true to what I was taught or have learned the hard way over the last 5 plus decades since I left home and had to grow up. Besides, I freely admit I am a cheap SOB and hate to waste the few dollars I have worked so hard to get.
Thanks for listening to an old country boy’s rant.
We need more good old country boy “rants” like yours. Love your comments Vincent. I grew up on a ranch in the Rockies. It worries me when my grandkids say things like “Oh I don’t eat that”– or “how can you stand that stuff it’s so gross.” We ate what was put before us, or went hungry until the next meal when I was growing up. It didn’t seem to hurt me none.
The Dumbing Down Of America
Ever since the baby boomers were born American society was real proud of itself by creating new gadgets and technology to free people from their laborious toil known as work. It has freed women from being house wives, created disposal income, borrow today and pay later mentality. In doing so what was learned and taught by our grandparents, fathers and mothers is soon forgotten. Old fashion became a word of disdain. Any object determined to be old fashion be it an object, procedure, ideal, person or thing is to be set aside and no longer used. A new and improved item will take its place, even it it isn’t made as well as the original or new looking or bright and shinny.
The American Government as seen how easy it is to deceive the Baby boomers and those that follow because they failed to learn to use what they have at hand; what their older family members knew. They heard the stories about the hard times that their parents had to face; but, failed to understand the significance of their ordeal. These lessons were not passed on. The tools for everyday survival was not passed on. why? Because “new and improved” items were created to take their place.
America has too much processed food that is making the citizens sick and fat. The art of a home cooked meal is almost a thing of the pass. Americans spend far too much of their hard earned money for things that they, themselves, can cook, make or re-purpose. Gone are the days of homemade clothes, food cooked from scratch, fixing your own car or mechanical equipment and so on. You have to hire a “technician” just to turn a screw because they have the tool specifically used for that particular screw. Your car breaks down, you need a computer to find out what is wrong. You go to the doctor. They have to run tests to determine what is wrong with you. The art of thinking for yourself is rapidly disappearing. Soon you will have to pay someone to do it for you. My grand-kids can’t even add, subtract, multiply or divide without using a calculator. (Well, I taught them how and that put them three years ahead of their classmates and it only took me one afternoon to do it.)
When people fail to learn from the past, they will find themselves at the mercy of those that want to be in control. If every American just grew something in their own backyard just to supplement their own food you will find and see that the food shortage will become a food surplus.
If you took your surplus food to the food banks in this country you will end starvation. If you picked the excess fruits from your trees and did the same there would no longer be hungry in this country. But no! everyone wants to get paid for their surplus food or they will let it rot where it is. This is why we as Americans need to change the way we do things. Offer a helping hand without getting paid in the other. Don’t allow the corporations to run our lives for profit. Take charge of our own lives. Learn to survive through sustainability. Sustainability means working for yourself, your family, your neighbors then your government. It is about time Americans stand on their feet once more instead of sitting on their asses letting others do the work for them. This is how China, Russia, and any other foreign nation will pass us by. Instead of being on the top, we will find ourselves on the bottom of the pile taking what we can get at the price dictated to us.
All of this will happen because everyone doesn’t grow their own food or have their own garden. I guess you are really old fashion if you allow history to repeat itself. Are you prepared to repeat history again?
I agree with Orrin. I thank God our parents taught us how to WORK. Now our children, and grandkids have many times given my wife and I those same kudos for teaching them that it is ALWAYS– “You have to do the work to earn the play.”
Keep up the good work, and as Orrin always says in closing — GOD BLESS THE USA!
Dear Frank,
It is tragic, what has happened since World War II, to our American values, our self sufficiency and our moral compass,
The “Greatest Generation” paid a heavy price for our freedoms and in the process accelerated technology. It was less than 50 years from the Wright brothers first flight, to the age of jet planes and disposable appliances.
However,while making life for us better and easier, they never anticipated the vast array of “unintended consequences” that would come to pass and we see today, that grew out of their sacrifices.
Their goal was to make life “easier” for their children and grandchildren. They struggled daily just to get by, worked hard and often did without themselves at times, so their children were happy and did not have to work for their basics of life.
They believed in God, and the Stars and Stripes. They respected authority, help their neighbors and knew the difference between “Right and Wrong.”
Our parents and grandparents truly understood the principles of “survival” and “self-reliance” because they had to live it (day in and day out) and sometimes they died in the process!!!
Tragically, their unintended consequences now leave us two or perhaps three generations deep in the “give me, give me, give me what I want … right now” society that will be the destruction of our Republic.
Chaos is looming ever closer and only those of us who act now to prepare have any chance at all of living through the “back to pioneer” hard times that are coming.
I’ll shut up now and get off my soap box, as I am sure there are no “Millennial’s reading this anyway. They are too busy praying to their cyber gods, shopping at Wally-World, tweeting, Face Booking, socializing and protesting that they still don’t get enough free stuff.
God Save America,
Orrin
I always have more vegies left over from the garden, some I give to neighbors the rest I either can or dehydrate as a hedge against SHTF I use up the previous year stock during the winter may not be as fresh but I know I always have my own food bank when needed.
America will be great again with Trump at the helm!