I feel for your losts. First let me say, dont ever give up. I lost my mom and house in hurricane gustav. I had to live on my wooded property 2 yrs, so been there. You dont have to go live in the woods to have that out-doors attitude and free mind. It is a way of thinking. As for mentoring, look up ray mears on youtube because there are tons his vids there. He teaches wood-lore - kind of coin the phrase, is the best practical teacher I know of. I hope this helps. Remember, why go over the mountain when you can go around. Timbwolf50
You can find write-ups, pictures, videos, and a lot of other "self study" information in the Bush Class. It is worth a look. BushClass USA If you were in my area, I would be glad to meet with you and go practice skills and such. I am not scared of people like some folks.
Well, me thinks you need to teach yourself 'How' to focus. First, decide exactly WHAT your personal priorities are and, then, give your undivided attention to achieving your personal goals. Your narrative also gives me the distinct impression that you do NOT know how to 'COMPARTMENTALIZE' the various issues circulating throughout your daily life. Neither do you apparently realize when to STOP GIVING! Remember: Survival isn't about giving; it's about sustaining yourself, instead. Let me give you an example of what I mean: My wife and I rescue feral cats. There are always more cats to be rescued than we have either the means or the money to provide for and maintain. So, even though it can be a heartbreaking experience I've found it necessary to 'steel myself' and know when NOT to take another one of God's suffering creatures in. Is it painful? Yes, but it is, also, necessary to recognize when you've reached the limit, and need to backoff and say, 'No!' (If for no other reason than the reality that if you don't know 'When' to stop then you might not be able to continue on at all.) When I used to work for a living I used to work — Period! I left my personal life and problems at the office's front door; and I didn't pick them up again until it was time to leave. Was I able to do this perfectly? No, I was not; but, still, I knew how to produce and get my job done 'When' I was supposed to. Right now you seem to want to run away; and it's THIS that's taking up a lot of your time and energy. I'll be frank with you: LIFE IS FULL OF THINGS AND OCCASIONS THAT YOU'RE GOING TO WANT TO RUN AWAY FROM; BUT, IT'S GOING TO BE REALLY DIFFICULT FOR YOU TO BE SUCCESSFUL AT ANYTHING UNTIL AFTER YOU, FIRST, LEARN HOW TO STAND STILL, PAY ATTENTION, AND APPLY YOURSELF TO THE TASK-AT-HAND. How do you do this? Someone once said to me, 'All motivation, if it is to be successful, has to be self-motivation'. Self-motivation requires a very positive mental AND emotional attitude — Not an essentially negative one which is the real attitude that, whether you consciously realize it or not, you appear to be projecting. I'm going to tell you, now, that: You are not only what you eat; but, you are also what you allow yourself to think and, by thinking, to actually become! Your situation is NOT unique! At one time, or another lots of people 'hate' their lives. So what? It's still Planet Earth, right; and nobody ever said that things were going to be easy. The 'Good Book' even says words to the effect, 'Time and unforeseen circumstance happen to ALL men'; and that God, Himself, 'will not allow any (righteously inclined) man to endure suffering beyond what he is able to bear'. ( ~ Ecclesiastes 9:11, and I Corinthians 10:13.) I don't want to be too hard on you; but it's obvious to me that, right now, you consider yourself to be, something of, an unfortunate victim of circumstance. Well — hell's bells — we are ALL, in one way or another, victims of circumstance! Just like everybody else you've now got one of two personal choices to make: Either you rise up to meet the challenge(s) life has presented you with, or else you give up and attempt to run away. (In which event the adverse circumstances in your life will, more than likely, end up defeating you.) Look, I can't 'carry your pack' for you; and neither can anyone else on the board. Ultimately you're going to have to shoulder your own burdens and walk on down life's road. If you need an inspiring example I'll give you one that I picked up many years ago from a 19th century fur trapper by the name of Hugh Glass who, coincidentally, was born near my home in Scranton, PA. On those several occasions when things have been tough in my own life, I've remembered how Glass fought to survive AND, in fact, did manage to survive in the face of astonishing (almost) insurmountable odds. What is the lesson I took away from Glass' miraculous survival account? YOU'VE GOT TO WANT TO SUCCEED! MORE THAN ANYTHING ELSE, YOU'VE GOT TO WANT TO WIN! IF YOU REALLY WANT TO ACCOMPLISH WHAT SEEMS TO BE AN 'IMPOSSIBLE TASK' THEN, YOU NEED TO SIGNIFICANTLY CHANGE YOUR PERSONAL ATTITUDE. ALL IT REALLY TAKES IS FOR YOU TO CHANGE YOUR PERSONAL ATTITUDE FROM NEGATIVE TO POSITIVE IN ORDER FOR YOU TO HAVE A MUCH BETTER THAN AVERAGE CHANCE OF ACHIEVING WHAT ONCE SEEMED TO BE AN IMPOSSIBLE GOAL! Which I admit can be an extremely difficult, if not impossible, thing to do if you should also happen to be a disbelieving atheist. At times life CAN be overwhelming; and, as 'dark' as things might appear to be, there is always that one tried and true historical solution: ....... A direct appeal to that one invisible God whose existence the most obdurate and ignorant of men are always railing back and forth about. Probably NOT exactly what you wanted to hear, yes; but, just the same, this is the best advice I know how to offer! So, if nothing else, keep this one thought in mind: If God is for you then no man, nor group of men, can possibly succeed against either you, or whatever it is that you set out to accomplish. This is the truth; and history is full of textbook proofs to support the conclusion. Here's a parting gift for you: 'Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you; for every one that asketh, receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened.' 'What man is there among you, whom if his son asks for bread will give him a stone? Or if his son asks for a fish, will hand him a serpent, instead?' 'If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more shall your Father which is in Heaven give good things to them that ask of Him?' ( ~ Matthew 7:7-12) You know what I'm going to say next, right! HAVE YOU ASKED — REALLY ASKED — FOR THE HELP THAT YOU NEED?
