CONVERTING CHAOS INTO ORDER Part Two

Author Essie Fedhacher

Before zealously discarding material goods, it is important to preface such heavy-lifting activities, by working to “clear the junk from our own minds” the better to apply sound judgments, rather than emotionally and mentally “doing the same thing and expecting change” – which in 12 Step parlance is the essence of “insanity”.

Sound familiar to anyone?

Probably to those who also have 12 Step Group Affiliations in their backgrounds – but a totally new and potentially radical mindset for those who do not. But there is wsdom to bootleg (another program term) from others’ experience, strength, and hope.

IMO most of us are products of our raising. Whether aware of it or not, we deal with dysfunction varying from mild, to moderate, to overwhelming. From infancy on our minds were like blank slates – at risk of, to use an old computer term – GIGO – meaning Garbage In, Garbage Out. Perhaps unbeknownst to even ourselves, many have been limping through life in myriad areas, because of what was programmed onto our psyches, even combined with the effect of Nature Versus Nature.

In Program I sponsored a lotta, lotta people – which is rather a fancy word – for plain old “coaching” of other people who “want what you have” in the realm of successful, confident, pleasant and happier living. I used to tell my people, “12 Step Living is getting good psychiatric help on the cheap” and without being unduly effected by most shrinks who are a tad crazy themselves and may offer some skewed suggestions and solutions. It is a well known observation that many are drawn to this field of study and expertise due to their own horribly dysfunctional backgrounds that they hope to “fix” at a later time. I am sure there are some marvelous exceptions to the motivational rule in someone choosing a mental health career.

In short, almost no one is “normal” – as Program people say, “’Normal’ is a setting on the clothes dryer, or a town in northern Illinois, sister city to Bloomington.

Look into anyone’s home, and it doesn’t take long to figure out most people do NOT have a ‘normal’ way of viewing the material items that enter their households, garages, and outbuildings. I used to tell my sponsored, “Get rid of the trash! A cluttered environment results in chaotic thinking”. And another Essie gem, “The Native American Indians had it right – travel light through life. Get rid of the useless mental baggage, it’s too heavy, negative and depressing to drag through life, and get rid of the physical weight of ‘things’ that become to possess you rather than you effectively owning and using them.”

But those admonitions to my people, who counted on me to coach them to better living were during a Kinder and Gentler Time – and not as applicable – during these cruel and potentially wretched times which The Aware know we face, that result in a distinct NEED to stock and store at present for a potentially very dire future when things we take for granted now become unobtainable for any price when TSHTF and it’s TEOTWAWKI time.

Years ago I wrote a self-help autobiographical book to share privately with my Program people and the unifying theme in self-examination, healing, and recovery was simple:

FACE IT – TRACE IT – ERASE IT – AND REPLACE IT!

It works. It behooves almost anyone, but especially survival types to consider these points for mental modifications.. Some live every day with TSHTF in Grey Matter, Inner World USA, but it needn’t be that way, and recognizing this even can improve a person’s chances for survival. I’m a realist, however, and aware there are always those who want to take “short cuts” who will likely click out about seemingly esoteric article right now, and definitely not leave comments to inspire and edify other readers of TTR with contributions.

So, therefore, to those of sterner stuff (which we are ALL going to need good reservoirs of in our personalities for coming bad times) hang in there, and…

FACE that you have some personality defects that are likely harmful to your future. A high percentage of people have an unhealthy relationship with various aspects of life – behaviors that are not normal (when defined as ‘healthy’ as compared to ‘normal’ translated as ‘everyone-is-doing-it’.) Everyone is doing it often translates to mass idiocy; one need only to turn on the television set for evidence of that phenomenon!

So if you have a problem setting priorities with “material stuff” – admit it: FACE IT!

Done that? Okay. Good!

Now, friend, prepare to TRACE IT!

How did that mindset and resulting behavior occur? Give it some careful thought, while doing scut-work, driving, or activities that don’t require that doesn’t require a lot of thinking, shift part of the conscious to a different plane and delve into memories to ‘trace’ what motivates you, personally.

Were you raised in true poverty? Were you accustomed to doing without? Were you reared by parents who had sufficient money, just happened not to spend it on you and siblings, so there were some inherent and unnecessary derivational situations when friends and peers enjoyed material things enjoyable outings that your family didn’t? Because anything fun or memory-making as a family unit was considered “foolishness” compared to the allure of rising of “numbers” in a bank account?

Were you raised by ancestors who had at one time known wealth and plenty, but along with the rest of the Nation, lived through The Great Depression, World War Two Rationing, so they never took possessions for granted again? Or had known money at one time but lost it due to poor investments or financial disasters, so they never freely spent a dime ever again?

Were you raised in the “Relief System” (forerunner to welfare programs) and in an in-home culture where it was easy-come/easy-go? Where possessions weren’t well-cared for because someone else would provide money for replacement, or do so via charitable giving?

Were you raised by the area’s Junk Man, a parent who made a living via buying others’ materials for a pittance, and had outbuildings and pastures filled with ‘stuff’, and pastures full of old cars (before bona fide ‘junk yards’ existed)? Living in a messy but potentially very valuable homestead where area citizens could go to find a needed part for a repair job.

Were you raised by people who never set financial priorities? Never budgeted? Spent money in a whimsical manner? Where outgoing cash was available for whatever the desire-of-the-moment, especially enjoyment or luxury but little regard was given to safeguarding funds for necessities?

If you are married, consider your spouse’s mindset. Was your beloved raised in a similar vein? Or are you polar opposites in certain departments? Does very differing ways in which you’ve each been raised spark arguments about how money is spent, or even what material possessions are kept around, or tossed into the trash? In TSHTF and TEOTWAWKI situations unification of marital minds can become invaluable. There may be less stress, and even fights, if the origin of a behavior is pointed out as a tenet of how one was raised and even rather ‘helpless’ over than premeditated behavior selfishly perpetrated or even guaranteed to anger others via irrational actions instead of flawed logic (never thought through before.)

The above are just a random few examples of familial situations that may have “programmed” us to respond to what are viewed as things of value. The past can very well hold sway on how we set priorities on what’s worth storing for the future. In doing a personal (and honest) inventory, and figuring out the root and origin of how we view possessions and arrived at behaviors, facing and tracing is the key. (Sometimes even birth order placement is applies – whether the Eldest Child, Baby of the Family, or the Middle Child..)

REPLACE IT!

Nature, they say, hates a vacuum. Well, that being the case, when you set about to FACE-TRACE-ERASE…there arrives the all-important activity of REPLACING unworkable attitudes and behaviors with healthy alternatives and endeavors to assist you in facing the come-what-may future.

Self-awareness, knowing who YOU (are inside and out) can be some of the best, most valuable, powerful and lightweight survival gear to be acquired. What’s nice about mental modifications you needn’t make space Bug Out Bag kept in proximity to the door. Even better, you can use critical thinking and behavior methods whether you’ll stay put right where you are right now, or have the added stress and take-along limitations if you’re already reconciled and resigned to Getting Out of Dodge, leaving life as you know it behind with a lot of ‘stuff’ others will either use or destroy.

Converting chaos into order in the material realm is geared more toward those of you who are set up to stay put – and even die on the good earth you already own – watering the Trees of Liberty on your plot of acreage with your very blood, and are even okay with that potential life-or-death outcome because you have already aware that Planet Earth isn’t the Be All/End All.

To some, at this point, this may seem like a digression in the hoarder, pack-rat, and prudent storer dissertations shared here on TTR. I’ll be covering aspects of how to store materials with the five-minutes-or-less location finder tips and tricks. But I felt it necessary to preface some of that work by presenting folks with the wherewithal to do some mental and behavioral clean-up as may be necessary for the overall success, with it presented at the outset.

Later on I’ll be detailing and offering directions and approach methods to assist you in locating The Mother Load of Various Helpful Acquisitions – if you are lucky – for ABSOLUTELY NO FINANCIAL OUTLAY – or very minimal expenditure.

Unless you know how to parse a potential wealth of freebies to outfit yourselves and friends and family of like mind, it would be on par, IMO, like offering the Town Drunk the Keys to the Tavern, The Liquor Truck, and the Booze Supplying Repository Wholesaler Warehouse if you’re a mere pat rack or have a selfish hoarder’s mentality, instead of fostering the traits of a prudent storer.

As we said about Program meetings, back when I was younger and used to attend, that meetings were “like a potluck” so “Take what you want – and leave the rest.” To paraphrase – preparing, saving, stocking, and storing is like that, too. Safeguard you really need, other things you really want (as space allows) and – don’t worry about the extraneous cluttery items (or thoughts you may burden yourself with.)

In the future whether you’re a Bug Out Buddy or a Stay Put Sally – the excess stuff will only slow you down, mentally or physically whether you measure your travels in miles over unfriendly terrain or footsteps hieing yourself around your familiar property and dwelling that’s sheltered you day in day out.

Related posts:

1. CONVERTING CHAOS INTO ORDER Part One

This entry was posted on Monday, February 22nd, 2010 at 2:26 pm and is filed under Authors, Essie Feldhacher, Preparedness. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.