Domestic Me

It's nothing too new for me, but lately I've been focusing more and more on adding to my food storage. This is not an easy feat when I live in Alaska 1/2 the year. First of all, Juneau, Alaska has no farms, no ranches, no food source but the sea and plants found in the woods. What you buy from the grocery stores costs at least twice what it costs in the lower 48 (states) because it all has to be shipped up. Eating healthy is hard. Storing healthy food in bulk is almost impossible. But there are ways. While the sea can offer up numerous amounts of goodness, it's not easy to get if you don't have a boat, which I don't. So I turn my eyes to the forest. My two favorite times of summer are the ends of July to harvest fireweed and the middle of August to harvest wild blueberries. I look forward to these days off all year long.


While there's most likely going to be a drizzle falling on me while i pick, I'm grateful for it. That means the biting bugs are kept at bay. While I have to constantly keep an ear out for rustling in the nearby shrubs I'm grateful to know that it might be a bear or, much better yet, a friend helping me out. At the end of the day I'm cold, wet, and tired, but I'm grateful for the fresh air and the exercise. While I soak my goods to get all the worms and gnats out, I'm grateful to know that they are natural, chemical free. I am so grateful for these moments to re-connect with Mother Earth, Heavenly Father, and myself.

When my time in Alaska is over and it's time for my winters in Arizona with my family everything changes. There's a constant hustle and bustle, traffic, sales, ads, so much stimulus. It's not an easy transition. But there is always one constant that pulls me through - my family. One thing my mom and sister and I have always enjoyed doing together is canning. While I, the youngest of 4, grew up in the suburb of Phoenix, AZ, my oldest sister, Nikki, has all of her fondest childhood memories in Idaho. She recalls hauling firewood, swimming in the ditch, knowing all her neighbors, having game hang in the garage, and helping with the garden. But one of her strongest and favorite memories is watching and helping Mom bottle as much food as she could. The basement and cupboards would always be packed with bottle after bottle of goodness.



While Nikki can't raise her own children with these exact same experiences, she has been able to still set an example of them in ways that she can. Her desire to have her 2 years worth of food storage is such an example to me. Not only is she following the wise council given, but she has learned so many new and useful things. Food storage is so different from what it was 25 years ago when we left Idaho. And being one of the most generous people I know, she has made sure to inspire Mom and me and teach us and help us so that we can be better prepared as well.



Since my return to Arizona 3 weeks ago we have bottled 90 lbs of beets, 20 lbs of concord grapes, 20 loaves of bread kits, and 50 lbs of chicken. Once again the closets are filling up and our dinners are getting tastier. I am so excited to keep this tradition alive, to pass on these skills and knowledge to the next generation. And while I pray that we never need all of this food we are storing, I am grateful for the sense of peace I have knowing that we have it no matter what.