Famous Americans such as Benjamin Franklin, George Washington and Abraham Lincoln are revered for their quotes about the value of preparation. It’s abundantly clear they understood the importance of prudent planning.
But it’s 2013, not 1776 or 1865. The dust from those powdered wigs and Civil War cannons has settled. So, why is preparedness still so important in today’s world?
Well, the challenges we all face — everything from education, parenting and family budgeting to the uncertain economic landscape — are complex enough on their own. If you’re not doing your best to plan efficient ways to address these mountainous molehills, you may find yourself without the resources you need.
The same goes for unexpected events. There are a lot of public service announcements for Californians to be mindful of earthquakes, Midwesterners to plan for tornadoes, and coastal residents to anticipate hurricanes. Yet, the fact is that any community is susceptible to multiple types of natural disasters or emergency occurrences.
It’s great to talk about the importance of being ready for “the worst,” but it’s even better to be ready, because once there’s an unexpected event, it’s impossible to undo a lack of preparation. You can’t wait for a disaster to strike, then once it comes say, “Oh no, I need to do something about this.” Life doesn’t work that way. Dire circumstances don’t wait around for us — and not for our families, either.
So, we can agree that being prepared for unexpected calamity is a good idea? Knowledge about dealing with emergencies is great, but it won’t matter if you don’t have enough food and clean water to survive. Take a comprehensive approach, and help protect the people you value the most with emergency food supplies and other emergency essentials, like extra batteries, flashlights, matches, etc.
Somewhere, George Washington is nodding his powdered head in agreement.
