I have always wondered what people mean when they say they are modern homesteaders.
Modern homesteading is about creating a lifestyle that goes back to the basics. Learning life skills that have been forgotten in our fast paced world. It is going to look different for every individual and family depending on where you live, your attitude and how realistic your goals are.
Sometimes you just gotta smile at people…
The idea of homesteading your own land produces all kinds of reactions from people. When someone says that they are going to begin homesteading they can receive many different reactions. Some people think this means homesteaders grow their hair out really long and never bathe. Others instantly picture Little House on the Prairie. Occasionally you have the people that get really concerned that they will never see their friend again because they are going to disappear into the woods, surviving by foraging and hunting.
People have great imaginations. But I believe the definition of homesteading is not that simple.
Many basic life skills have been forgotten in our world of modern technology and quick foods. Skills that have not been passed on from one generation to the next. How many people do you think know how to plant seeds in the soil and grow a garden?
It isn’t necessary to know how to raise and butcher a chicken because the grocery store is always open and always sells it. Why would we need to know how to can and preserve food when our grocery store stocks fruits and vegetables year round? The answer? We don’t, unless we have the desire to be self-sufficient and prepared for unexpected catastrophes.
1. Modern Homesteading is about LOCATION
Homesteading is going to look different for every individual and family. Not every modern homesteader inherits 100-acres of fertile land in Tennessee. We certainly didn’t! Modern homesteaders begin where they are. This could mean 100 acres in Tennessee or it could mean a small apartment in a busy suburb.
You might be asking, “How can someone homestead in an apartment?”. Certainly you couldn’t raise chickens or butcher your own cattle. But did you know that many cities have community gardens? If your city doesn’t, see if you can get one started. Use the space you have available to you already. Use your balcony or even rooftop to plant vegetables. The modern homesteader is creative!
You might not be able to raise your own cattle, but there are many places to buy farm-raised beef. Pick one near you and visit often. Learn the ins and outs of raising and butchering cattle. eatWILD is a website that will help you locate farms and ranches near you.
Modern homesteaders are not limited by our location. We are only limited by our imaginations.
2. Modern Homesteading is about ATTITUDE
How successful you will be in homesteading has everything to do with attitude! Modern homesteaders have a desire to learn and know how to do things. We homestead not because we reject all things modern and easy, but because of the satisfaction that comes with knowing we worked hard to till the land, plant the seeds, weed the garden, and harvest the crop. It’s the pride we feel in collecting fresh chicken eggs every morning and serving them to our families.
What if we taught our children how to sew on a loose button or stitch a rip in a shirt instead of going out and buying a new one? Modern homesteaders tend to look for a way to extend the life and resources of what we have available to us. These are some general attitudes that modern homesteaders share:
- We are self-sufficient. Self-sufficiency does not mean we have no need for anyone else in our lives. It does mean that we take steps towards being more independent of modern systems. We educate ourselves so that we can live with the knowledge of how to provide and care for our families.
- We are concerned for the quality of food and treatment of animals. A wise king once said, “A righteous man regards the life of his animal, but the tender mercies of the wicked are cruel.” (Proverbs 12:10). Modern homesteaders want to know that what they are feeding their families is healthy and also humanely raised. I have been saddened to see some of the very poor conditions that many chickens are raised in. Knowing that the chickens I feed my family come from a humane source, or even better, my own yard, provides the peace of mind that I am doing well for my loved ones.
- We are freedom-loving. This does not mean modern homesteaders are totally against government or laws. What is does mean is that we want to protect the freedoms we have that are recognized in our constitution. We desire to live our lives free to build and produce using the creative brains that we have been given by God.
- We are hardworking. We are not afraid to get dirty. Homesteading is hard work, especially if you did not grow up learning these skills. Homesteading requires mental and physical exercise. Going to the drive-thru to grab a burger is a whole lot easier than raising cattle and butchering beef to grill at home.
3. Modern Homesteading is about being REALISTIC
We did not start our homesteading journey on our beautiful 7-acre homestead in northern Idaho. It was many years before we purchased that land. We began our journey before homesteading was a trendy term.
We were missionaries in a remote village on an island in Indonesia for 5 years. There we lived off-grid. We had a generator that we used to charge batteries at night and we used kerosine-lit lamps as well as candles for light in the evenings. We had a hand-dug well and collected rain water from gutters on our house. We washed our clothes by hand and hung them to dry in the wind. We tried our hand at growing vegetables in our garden, but weren’t always successful at producing a crop. We also attempted raising chickens, but I’m sad to admit I was not good at it. My chickens never wanted to come home. They always ended up roosting at our neighbor’s house. 🙂
After coming back from that remote village we lived in Utah. My husband learned about aquaponics while on a mission trip to a small village in Cameroon. When he returned, we built a small home aquaponics system with goldfish, growing a few vegetables at a time. We also built a peeponics system that was successful at growing vegetables. At one time we were growing garlic, green beans, corn and radish in our aquaponics system. We began reading about rabbits and learning what kind of rabbits are good for meat. We built a rabbit cage out of old pallets that we got for free in town.
My point is that to be a modern homesteader you need to begin where you are. You don’t need to wait until the time is just right. It is good to plan and dream, but at the same time be realistic with your situation and limitations. Quite possibly, you have a job that requires you to be in the city. We did at one time, and that’s ok. Be a urban homesteader. But it’s ok to change your circumstances too.
Being an urban homesteader has its limitations. You are limited on what you can grow, you are limited on what you can build. Buying your own homesteading land in a location that gives you the freedom to be creative can be a rewarding experience. I feel that finding a good real estate agent to help you with the process is essential to your success in buying homesteading land. You can read about what qualities I feel are important to look for in a real estate agent in this article here.
Sometimes you just gotta smile at people…
You can be a long-haired-never-bathe kind of modern homesteader if you want to! If you do, you might be isolating yourself to a unique group of friends, but it’s your choice. 😉 There is not just one type of person that makes up the modern homesteader, but there are definite characteristics that define us. We are people who enjoy freedom, want to get our hands into our work, provide for our families creatively, and share the fruits of our labor with our friends and family.
So get after it! Don’t settle for the mold that society tells you you have to fit into. Make decisions for yourself. Read a book. Observe a neighbor. Watch a video. LEARN. Become a modern homesteader. I challenge you to learn a new skill. Equip yourself and work towards becoming more knowledgeable in the skills that go back to the basics.
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