John and his wife Louise , well educated corporate folk, left it all for a small run down farm in the east. Hey, we're going to do the same thing ! With the exception of $3000 they earned annually as substitute teachers and lecturers, they were totally self sufficient. Any "get back to nature" hippie worth their homemade hemp pipe, read this book and fantasized about living the same type of life. We all wanted to make our own wine, butcher rabbits (we were all meat eating hippies back then. Vegans were not invented yet) and tan our own hides to warm us in the winter. It was this whole I'm free, You're free attitude that resulted in thousands of children being born with names like Willow, Bark and ...uh...Raven.
I bought this book in 1977 and have moved it from house to house for 34 years. I even dropped it in a mud puddle once but recovered it and dried it and continued moving it from location to location because ONE DAY...And that day will be June 9 when I tell you all that we are SELLING OUR FARM !
After Keith and I were married I discovered he also owned a copy of this book, even claiming that MY copy was HIS copy. He could not explain the dried mud splashes all over the cover but he was sure MY copy was HIS copy. Well, now it is OUR copy because ONE DAY...ONE DAY...is now baby, right now
My wild teen years were in the 60's so from the lofty vantage point of almost old age I just want to say one thing........one day/some day never comes unless you make it happen right now. Sad but true.
ReplyDeleteThese are the good old days. Just have to take the time to smell the pig poop. I still love the do it yourself, back to the forest,life. Don't we all!
ReplyDeleteLOL, so funny! I could tell you a butchering rabbits story... yet I never read this book. I would truly like to find a copy!
ReplyDeleteMBJ, don't worry "One day" is closer than you think. Art, pig poop does smell best when its on your own land, created by your own pigs, scented with real wood essence and Karen, copies of this book are still available through Amazon.com. Truly a great read.
ReplyDeleteThis was my first Homesteading book. I bought it when I was in my teens... carried it through over a dozen moves... read it to my kids... and passed it on to my son.
ReplyDeleteIt is so tattered that it now lives in a ziplock bag so that none of the pages wonder off and never return. Yet it is one of his prize possessions.
Remember One day is always tantilizingly over the hill top. Today is the place to start. You've already moved toward "Off the Grid Ville" just keep putting one foot in front of the other. You'll wake up one morning and suddenly realize you are there!