The first thought for most of us going off-grid or homesteading is can I get enough land to get away from the people.
When you are looking to become self-sufficient, you normally try to do it all yourself. And until you get there, you don’t feel secure. You can work your way through anything and be prepared for everything. But reality is a little different.
What you really need is not “people” but community. For homesteaders, community is key. They are the people we can trade with and trust in any situation. Your community is who you call when you want to take a short vacation and need someone to watch the animals.
Building a working community is hard. You must meet new people and really get to know them. It’s only through interactions that you can determine if they are the right people to join into your world.
Yet when crap hits the fan (or the local store is out of eggs), your community is the one thing you want with you.
For us, it’s even harder, as we are both natural introverts. But it is possible. We recently made friends with a few families in the community. We share common interests, our kids enjoy hanging out and it’s great to spend time with people we enjoy being with. Plus, we can all support each other when needed.
The cool thing is you don’t need money to work with a community. You can trade and barter. If I have the skills to maintain tools, and you have excess food, we have something to trade.
Don’t wait until the collapse to get a community together and start trading. Share what you can and strengthen your little group. Then you will truly be self-sufficient and ready for the end.
Go find a group that shares your interests or walk down the road and meet your neighbors. Instead of enemies across a fence, become best friends who support each other.