What makes us self-reliant?
Published: Tue, 01/22/19
I get invitations to answer questions on Quora and this came through yesterday: ‘What are some skills, besides martial arts, that you practice in hopes that you don't have to use them in real life?’
I decided that this one was worth answering so this was my response
‘This got me thinking about what interests me and why. I do martial arts because of the benefits training brings me on a day to day basis. Fitness, mental focus, managing my energy and having fun training with other people. I don’t really think about having to defend myself again (it has been many years since I last had to) but I still could if I had to.
I have done a great deal of first aid training over the years, starting when I was in the scouts and continuing with combat first aid in the TA and St John’s ambulance training courses so that I am covered as a Martial arts teacher. My conclusion based on all that training is that the best a first aider can usually do is ensure that a casualty’s situation does not get any worse, summon help and reassure and comfort the casualty until the ambulance arrives. I have been taught how to do CPR, stop bleeding by applying pressure etc but I am glad to say I have never had to do it yet.
Thinking about other things I do. I camp quite a lot each summer at various events I attend and teach at. I also like to keep my hand in with making fires, cooking out of doors and generally roughing it a bit. If I ever found myself in a homeless or refugee situation I would at least know how to make the best of it.
I maintain and fix my own vehicles because it saves money and I generally enjoy doing it. Having the mechanical skills I do and understanding how cars work means I can do emergency repairs when I have to. Sometimes I can fix a vehicle enough to get it home but I do carry a RAC card too. (Rescue service who will transport my vehicle home if I can’t get it going.)
I do a certain amount of vegetable gardening and I intend to do a lot more this year. Again, I do it for my own satisfaction and pleasure. It is nice to eat home grown vegetables but it isn’t necessary when you can buy all you need in the shops. On the other hand in the post apocalyptic situation knowing how to grow your own food might become very important.
I do a certain amount of work as a handyman to earn money. If I had too I could build my own house from available materials. The result probably would not be very pretty but it would be habitable. Again, a post apocalyptic situation I would be able to barter my ability to make or fix all kinds of things for stuff that I might need.
I like to be self-reliant rather than just being a consumer. This reply is written on a computer which someone else had thrown out because it was running an out of date version of MS Windows. I converted it to Ubuntu Linux and it will probably serve me for a few more years.
Finally, many people are very dismissive of ‘organised religion’ and seem to think that there is no point in being involved in a faith community. I am an active member of my local church but I am pretty relaxed about it too. If you believe that it is possible to have a relationship with a creator God then it makes sense to me to share that relationship with other people who feel the same way. Being part of a faith community has always been an important part of my life. It helps that I have always belonged to a pretty liberal church which celebrates as a worshiping community but doesn’t try and tell me what to think. On the other hand, if I ever do find myself in the presence of genuine evil or despair I have the means to call on the help I need to counter it. This has always been one of the benefits of religious faith as expressed in the 23rd Psalm verse 4 ‘yeah, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear
no evil.’
Thinking about what I have just read I can see that I am a bit of an outsider but I am resilient and I can cope with a crisis.’
I do like to encourage other people to be self-reliant too, which is why I am holding thee Runes and Trees Retreat in June this year. This event will be a chance to reflect on your abilities to be self-reliant out of doors. Okay, it is only three days and we won’t be far from electricity or piped water but you will be out of doors and you will discover resources that you didn’t know you had as well as learning some useful skills. More details and booking here http://rr.stavcamp.org/
regards
Graham
PS You will also receive my Foundation Programme as preparation for the Rune Retreat, here is what a recent participant had to say about it.
‘I’ve been studying Martial Arts, Meditation, Yoga, and energy work for 40 of my 44 years, and for the vast majority of those years, I have been a teacher. In those years, I have searched relentlessly for a way to synthesize what I’ve learned into a seemless approach to life. A little over ten years ago, I came into contact with basic Stav material, and was immediately intrigued. Here was an approach that contained within it, tools to work with every aspect of life. The only problem was that I lived so far away from instruction. When I discovered that Mr Butcher had developed a distance Foundation Programme, I jumped right on it. As a teacher, I appreciate someone who's able to teach well. Mr Butcher couldn't have done a better job! In 9 lessons, which include rune lore, myth, physical and mental exercises, and personal stories, the student is subtly immersed in the Stav world view. After the nine lessons, I was pleasantly surprised to
not only posses a greater understanding of Stav, but also a greater understanding of the arts and practices that I've practiced my whole life. It has given me a lens with which to view reality and a tool to navigate the web of life. I wholeheartedly recommend this course!!! -Geoff Dixon’