Regenerative Homesteading

I have allowed social influences to dictate a part of my life that I thought I had a firm hold on. The term Sustainability is in right now. I thought it meant a return to old times. You know, growing our own food, working with our hands, coexisting with nature, living more eco friendly, reducing landfill items etc. Living a sort of way where we could sustain the earth longer. Historically it refers to the ability to maintain, uphold or support a process over time. I admit I had this term scattered throughout my blog but then I realized something. I don’t want to maintain life currently.

The state of the world fucking sucks. I don’t want to maintain shit. I want something different.

I understand times change, and for some weird reason definitions of words keep changing. Doublespeak much?? But how did sustainability go from keeping something maintained or upheld into describing what type of change society longs for in the future? According to Wikipedia; Sustainable Living describes a lifestyle that attempts to reduce the use of Earth‘s Natural Resources by an individual or society. That is great, but by sustaining it wouldn’t we be upholding it to whatever it is that is now. A world run by a group of “elite“ trash who think universal vaccines and paper straws are going to solve all of our problems? Hard Pass. We can’t change the past or today and why would we want to maintain all the shitty parts of it. I understand that there are many routes that the world sustainable can encompass; social, political, economical Etc. But in the homesteading community, are we using the term correctly?? Do we really want to maintain, continue or prolong living the way we currently do? … I sure as fuck don’t!

We long for simpler times and days of the past. Not to romanticize it but to remember it. To bring forth the connection families had, with each other and their land and their communities. To bring back into existence boredom and the magical things that happen when we have to actually think for ourselves. To find ways back to the earth and truly make a difference for our children and their futures. To teach them and ultimately leave them with an earth they know how to work with in unison and not against.

Side Note* if you search the words sustain, sustainable and sustainability you will find a million different definitions and none of them match. Why is the English language so fucked..?

I think the term Regeneration suits what we’re all trying to accomplish much more eloquently than Sustainability.

Merriam-Webster.com defines Regeneration as 1. an act or process of regenerating:the state of being regenerated. 2. spiritual renewal or revival 3. renewal or restoration of a body, bodily part or biological system after injury or as a normal process.

Now doesn’t this seem like a better definition of a way to live going forward? We screwed the earth up, now let’s fix it. I don’t want to sustain our current way of living. Maybe I’m looking into this too much but this makes a lot more sense to me then the vague definitions of sustainability floating around. It’s a buzz word and it makes me mad thinking about it. On the outside it seems like a term that we can grab hold of and proudly proclaim we are making a difference in the world with but when you open it up and sit with it, it sort of doesn’t make any sense.

Sustain the current state of mother earth and society or regenerate it?

What are your thoughts?

Regenerate; restored to a better, higher or more worthy state. Merriam-Webster.com

~ K ~