When you are unemployed such as I am at the moment it's real easy to limit your focus to today and tomorrow, and ask how am I going to just make it this week? While in my situation that is important, I don't want to lose focus of my longer term goals either. My longer term goals include having a 1 year supply of food and being prepared for economic disaster like we are witnessing in Europe, since it appears that our government is trying real hard to emulate Europe. My situation right now means that it will take me longer to reach my long term goals but it is still possible.
I know that redistribution of wealth is not cool, and I really do wish we had a different system in place (ie. private groups providing for social issues)- but it isn't so now. I am on welfare. I know it is the redistribution of wealth they take it from my brother, and give it to me. Totally not fair, I know. If my mom did that- like take my brothers paycheck and gave me part of it then there would be a big problem, and a lot of fighting between family members. It really should be up to my brother to help me or not as the case may be. I'd rather be poor than be the cause of all that family fighting, but perhaps I'm an exception. Getting back to the point, on welfare you get food stamps and sometimes cash aid. The amount varies depending on family size. Food stamps are always generous. So I expect I'll still be able to work on obtaining my food storage especially now that I know more about food.
When you are poor it's easier sometimes to establish the things that you really need to survive. Shelter, heat- in winter, food and water. I used to think that Food and water would be on the top of my list. And it is in a disaster situation, but as in a being poor situation it is not. Food is still currently one of the easiest resources to find for instance there is food stamps, food banks, soup kitchens, church groups, ect. all trying to get food out to people. Shelter is harder to come by and hold on to especially with out a job. Most Shelters are first come first serve, and space is limited. Apartments want credit checks and work history, owning is harder because it is a resource that you could sell, but sometimes like now the market is so low that mortgages are lower than paying rent.
Fortunately I have shelter, so hopefully I can hold on to it. Things are both easier and harder with children. Services are easier to qualify for if you have children. It's harder because, at least in my case, I don't want my children to have to make hard choices like do we save our fuel for our car or go deposit a small check in town? It is not cool to have to make those kind of decisions. But I have found that it is best that we approach these problems together as a family. Understanding leads to more realistic expectations.
I started this post telling you how it is harder to stay focused on the big picture. It really can be harder. My advice, list the things that are really important to you. Think about what those things and what you want them to be like in 10 years. That is your long term goal, that is the big picture. Write it all down, because as the year goes on it will be harder to remember what that dream is. Writing it down will help you remember. Sometimes when I feel like I can't describe it with words, I'll sketch it out as a picture. (I'm not an artist- but sometimes a picture is worth a thousand words. Keep it somewhere you can see it. It will help you remember your priorities or the big picture and you'll probably be amazed with how much you'll do this year. HAPPY NEW YEAR my friends!
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