Never Leave a Morsel
The Turning Feral Journal - Day 33
Day 33: Yesterday, we shared a Thanksgiving meal with my wife’s family. Like any true American-based family unit, we gobbled down Turkey, potatoes, and macaroni & cheese before diving into a smorgasbord of deserts. But, what makes eating with my wife’s family different from mine is that her family are first generation immigrants from Russia.
Culturally, things are different. The attitude around the ‘why’ behind the reason to celebrate Thanksgiving is much more palpable. Conversations swirled around faith, family, and politics as you would expect from the caricature of Thanksgiving family meals but it always came back to thankfulness for the country we call home and the freedoms it provides, the USA.
This gratitude and pride culminated in talking about the patriarchal grandfather who is now 91 years old… He wasn’t with us in person this year, but the family talked about how if he were with us, there would not be a single crumb left on the table (of which we had lots of uneaten food). The stories told were how he would always take time to wipe any morsel left behind on a table and swoop it into his mouth before gently scolding whoever was around with the line, “you are lucky you do not know what it’s like to live through a famine.”
Having lived in Leningrad (now Saint Petersburg) myself during my early career, I am familiar with the history of starvation trauma that people went through in Russia during WWII and beyond. The interesting thing is that those sorts of food scarcity events have happened throughout history and continue to this day in varying parts of the world. Being around and breaking bread with people who have lived it and still remember the suffering like it was yesterday is an eye opening experience.
That little conversation around the holiday dinner table was a stark reminder for me on why my family and I are focused on self-sustainability. A reminder that governments fail and war, famine, and violence could show up at the door any day. Do I want that? Resoundingly, no! Is it likely? Probably not in my lifetime. However, I want to be as prepared to provide for my family in the event that it does, which is what drives me to continue learning as much as possible! So remember, don’t take anything for granted and when you can, never leave a morsel uneaten… you never know when you won’t have easy access to food.
Writing Prompt: Do you have any close family or friends who have lived through an event that led to a scarcity of food? If so, reach out and ask them about the event. Write your findings and thoughts here:
Motivational Passage:
The full man does not understand the wants of the hungry.
-Irish Proverb
Rewilding Action: Mike Glover, the founder of Fieldcraft Survival, has a great book on practical preparation. You can find it here. The book is a great primer for being your own ‘rescuer’ in the event of all forms of societal collapse. If you want to have a better idea of what that collapse could actually look like, pick up my friend Clay Martin’s book ‘Prairie Fire.’