Friday, February 26, 2010

Hakarat Hatov - Gratitude and Prepping

Being prepared has many advantages. Among the obvious ones is being able to save/protect yourself, family and community in case of a real disaster. Besides the physical, there are psychological benefits as well. Being a prepper gives one an entirely different attitude towards life. For example, knowing that one can survive a terrible situation, knowing that they are in control of the situation, boosts ones self esteem.

What I want to concentrate on here is that no longer does one take everything that one gets during the day for granted. In order to be a "prepper" it requires a mindset of, "what would I do if I didn't have this?" "How would I survive without that?" When one wakes up in the morning and their home is heated, there is running water in his/her sink, you have ample toilet paper, the toilet flushes and their is plenty of food in the refrigerator/freezer and it is cold/frozen, it causes one to think, "Isn't it great that all this stuff works!". One recognizes that health isn't to be taken for granted and that if one needs a doctor or medicine, they are not far away, it is extremely comforting.

In other words, "every time one ponders how to survive without, one begins to realize how lucky they are with".

I think that this is especially important to the Jewish Prepper who has a religious obligation to realize the good that God has bestowed on him/her. When one prays, it gives them specific things to concentrate on. I believe that when a Jew says a blessing on food or a Shehechiyanu on a new garment they can have an intense understanding of how great it is to be in that predicament. This will continue throughout the day, everyday and makes you, the Jewish Prepper into a better Jew and a truly unique individual.

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