Skills of the past

Once again, I find myself rambling on about something other than cooking.  Well, kind of at least.  I was having a Facebook chat with my cousin last night about her father, who passed away a few years back.  He was an amazing man.  He grew up with 9 brothers and sisters on a dairy and tobacco farm in east Tennessee.  He, like most of his brothers had to leave school at an early age to work on the farm.  He learned to drive a truck at around the tender age of eight and could operate all the farm equipment before he had a driver's license.  He was raised in a shotgun house with too few bedrooms for 10 kids without indoor plumbing and electricity until sometime around the 60s.  He was a Korean war veteran, a man who worked for the same company until retirement and then worked another retiree job.  He raised his own food, grew a garden, knew how to take care of his animals, be they horses, cows, dogs, chicken or pigs.  He fixed his own car, truck and tractors.  He was married to his young sweetie until her death and then mourned her passing for the rest of his life. He raised his kids to fear God and act right.  He was a good man.  He didn't have a lot to say, but when he had something to say, you sure enough heard it. 

He taught his children his craft.  His kids all shared his passion for the land, the animals and their loved ones.  I am so proud of him for not only a life well lived, but also for passing along his knowledge and zeal to the second and third generations. 

So what happened to the rest of us?  Why are we college educated and able to read, write and reason, but could we survive outside of our bubbles?  Take the majority of the citizens of our great country- take away their heating and air conditioning, their ability to refrigerate items.  Their comforts of indoor plumbing and electricity.  What would happen to us?  Tell them that they have to raise their own food, be it vegetables in the garden or animals for meat and see what happens.  Why were all these skills lost in one single generation? 

Our idea of providing is bringing home cash and take out food.  We put all of our security in a system that has no backing.  Our cash only has worth that we place in it.  It is paper- nothing more, nothing less.  What happens when we finally decide that paper is totally worthless?  Anarchy?  Or do a few of the people who know how to live simply and without all these creature comforts thrive?  When do we get to the point that we realize that all the education that our children receive has a few holes.  When do we realize that only about 50% of our children's education will be taught in schools, and that we parents MUST fill in those holes.

I think a time is coming when things are going to change.  I think we have come so far that we have to take a few steps back again and re learn those skills that have been lost.  Are you doing anything to educate yourself in some of the lost skills of our past?

Just wondering y'all.
Leah