Scheduled Outage & A Letter to My Children

There's a little alert at the top of my blog page saying: "Scheduled outage at 4:00PM PDT on Thursday (3/25)."

That got me to thinking - scary thought, I know, but sometimes I actually have a few lucid moments.

Anyway, imagine if there were a "scheduled outage" throughout the land - the entire world for that matter. Say, four hours when everything just stopped. Commerce, production, scheming, planning, celebrating ill-gained "profits" or grieving stupid purchases and reckless consumption.

A time when everything came to a standstill and we were all given the opportunity to come to our senses.

I know it will never happen, but what a revelation, what an historic event it would be. If you've even sensed an approaching storm, when everything seems to stand still for a moment and the skies change color, you know what I mean.

I just emailed my children with the following thought, after getting a bit peeved at them for their incessant questioning of my "doomer choices."

Here it is: Dear children of mine, You're all adults and can make your own choices. That is clear to me but, it seems to me that none of you recognize that I too am an adult. And therefore, I can make my own choices. In all the months, years actually, of your individual criticisms I have continued to live as I do because I truly BELIEVE in my choices and TIME has proven them to be prudent. So I ask each of you today to reflect on your choices and ask yourselves some questions.

1. If your decisions have been so good, why are you still struggling and always taking one step forward and three back?

2. If consumption and debt have served you so well, why do you still want more and never seem satisfied?

3. If you have each taken such good care of yourselves following the status quo, why are your cupboards bare, your debt immense, your pressures intense and your fears growing?

There are more questions I could ask but these are a good start. And before you raise get defensive by turning the questions on me, without considering them yourselves, I will gladly answer them.

1. I am not struggling anywhere near as much as any of you. Most of our teps are tiny and in a forward motion. Yes, we've had our challenges (truck motor comes to mind) but we have never been in danger of being homeless and hungry.

2. We are not drowning in debt and do not desire fleeting, useless STUFF because we know what truly satisfies us: a paid-for comfortable, small home; a garden and a woodshed; simple pleasures like reading, puzzles, blogging, talking, meditating.

3. Out cupboards are NOT bare, we're not saddled with debt, and we have few pressures. Around here "pressure" is figuring out how to split firewood when I've got a cold and Sweetie has a dislocated shoulder.

Now, I will admit to having fear. We both fear that this country will deteriorate to the point where many will perish - including each of you. We fear not living close enough to each of you to be of assistance. We fear that your children and grandchildren will never know the wisdom and security associated with growing and preserving their own food, or the warmth of a wood stove fire, or how to make quilts and repair torn clothing.

There is more I could say, but you'd probably tune me out within the first 10 minutes. So, I'm posting this on my blog in hopes that someone will read it and consider what I've said.

Love, Mother