I remember well the first time I heard the expression ‘learned helplessness’. My mom used the term and I didn’t understand it. I asked her to explain, which went something like, “As if a man is actually incapable of doing the laundry.”
Some time later I heard it used again, only this time in reference to a woman who wouldn’t dream of changing a tire because she might break a freshly manicured nail.
These are benign examples of a much more serious issue. A little co-dependency amongst family and friends can be a very good thing. It reminds us we need each other, and it’s nice to be needed, as long as it’s not too needy. 🙂
But there is a much more nefarious kind of learned helplessness that is proliferating in our society and because it’s being sold by some very slick salesmen it goes on, continually championed by those who should know better. US.
This is the kind of dependency that fosters anxiety and dis-ease, because it promotes frustration, alienation, victimhood, powerlessness. Under the guise of convenience, comfort, safety, and even fun, we have allowed ourselves to become dependent on criminals, sociopaths, martyrs, tyrants dressed up as experts and beneficent leaders and stars.
Food, water, shelter, health, energy, entertainment, protection. These are all crucial aspects of human life we’ve willingly outsourced to others. Gone are the days for the vast majority who cooked from their own gardens, played and sang tunes around the fire pit, cared for their own ill, built their own homes. How many generations must we go back to know a time before politicians were household names and stock markets dealt only in livestock?
How many folks believe we have it so much better in our ultra-civilized modern world because they’ve bought the propaganda of their oppressors, those who actively promote and celebrate our dependency as progress?
There is a wellspring of peace of mind knowing that if you ever dare say “Take this job and shove it” you won’t end up homeless and hungry.
If you could do one thing in the new year to release the yoke of dependency just a bit, or a bit more, what would you do?
thanks for reading!
Kensho Homestead 
That’s good to hear! I could talk about gardening and cooking all day. Which is another conversation starter when it comes to health, simply cooking with good ingredients at home is going to be healthier than most restaurants these days. If folks aren’t even cooking then a garden wouldn’t appeal to them anyway. Though with all the different diets out there the topic is easily off into the weeds pretty quickly, pun intended. :). How about a joke? A vegan and a carnivore walk into a bar. The carnivore says, “Hey, soy boy!” The vegan says, “Hey, meat head!”
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Wow. Tough questions about doing more. Thought I was doing as much as I could, but I’ll have to think about it. I have started to talk to people I’ve come in contact with about supplementing to achieve good health & immunity to lessen doctor visits. Only two so far but I found that by asking ” do you have a garden?” starts a lot of conversation that leads elsewhere. If the answer is no, I tell them how I grew a few edible plants in flowerpots even when I lived in an apartment. If yes, then I ask what kind of plants do you prefer for their special health benefits . Of course, you need to have some good suggestions to offer if you go this route but at least it forces you to keep up on these things yourself. It’s been amazing where these conversations have gone.
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Thanks Granny! Me too, they feel so wrong in every way. I don’t sleep well, find it hard to breathe and hard to focus. I hope you have a nice wood stove to help the chill and good luck, always nice to hear from you.
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Thank you so much, right back to y’all!!
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Happy New Year to ya’ll too. Looks like it’s going to be an interesting weather day. My thermometer is showing 75 at 9:00 A.M. yet my weather forecast is saying that it’ll be 25 degrees tonight. A 50 degree drop. Guess your poor pup is going to be headed to the bathtub. Maybe I should follow her actions & head for my bathtub also. I really hate these extreme weather swings.
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Happy Homesteading! Wishing you peace and prosperity, Happiness and contentment! May the new year be a good one for you, your home, your hubby and your 4 legged furry family of friends!
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Thank you kindly, to y’all too!
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Happy New Year to you and yours!
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