Hard economic times may require some hard choices, but imagination and a little creativity can go a long way towards changing ‘getting by’ to ‘getting better.’ As I grappled with what my next topic would be for this post, I came to realize that our family has had to deal with financial difficulties many times over the years. We had a small 29-acre truck farm in the mountains of South Eastern British Columbia. We raised pigs, goats, chickens, horses and sheep. Although there was little change jingling in our pockets, we never really felt ‘poor.’
Our vegetable garden provided the basics and then some. Our goats provided milk and cheese and the piggys… well, we wont go into that, we aren’t vegetarians but they were happy for the time they were with us.
Looking back, I am still impressed with the creative solutions we came up with when there was no money to purchase feed for the animals.
The horses and goats required hay over the winter and our farm was too small and too rocky to grow what we needed, yet they stayed fat and productive and this is how.
In one of my early morning rides on my big pinto horse, Dancer, I noticed several uncut fields of rich grass belonging to our neighbors. When I got home, I phoned them and asked if they were planning to cut and bale hay. Most didn’t have animals and weren’t planning to do anything but continue to let the fields go fallow but if I wanted the hay, I could have it. I then called a friend who had a hay mower and baler and made this arrangement. The owner of the pasture would get one third of the hay to sell, the owner of the mower and baler would get one third and I would get one third just for making a few phone calls. Before long, our hay shed was full with excellent grass hay.
Our goats were so productive I was able to exchange their surplus milk for vegetables we weren’t able grow and even for the services of a massage therapist when my back got sore from lifting all those heavy bales of hay.
I milked our neighbor’s cows for a few summers so that they could take an occasional vacation. With our goat’s milk and the milk from their cows there was plenty to go around. My husband made wonderful cheeses and the heavy Jersey cream from the cow’s milk was a luxury few could afford. I was reminded of that fact when I was in the market and saw strawberries on sale. We had so many strawberries in our garden that they were part of our daily meal to the point of monotony. “Good grief, I’m getting sick of strawberry shortcake,” I said and was met with a scowl from a nearby shopper.
The work was hard and the days were long but we were rewarded for our efforts with the abundance that graced our table and filled the barn with sweet smelling hay… a gift from Mother Earth made possible with a bit of creative problem solving.
Obviously not everyone lives on a farm so these specific solutions wont work for everyone, but the basics are the same. If money is in short supply, accept the challenge and tap into your creative self. Money doesn’t have to be the only medium of exchange. Everyone has something to offer. Child minding, house keeping, tutoring a student, shopping for a ‘shut-in,’ tending someone’s garden for a share, just to name a few.
At Christmas I traded some of my small oil paintings for beautiful artful things friends were making thus providing a variety of gifts we were able to give and some of my artwork was even traded for expensive gourmet coffees and other tasty holiday treats.
The biggest surprise came when we were having particularly tough time. I had all our bills collected in a basket on the kitchen table. While enjoying the excellent gourmet coffee with a friend, she pulled our electric bill from the basket and said, “I’ll pay this, just do a small horse painting for my Mom. It’s her birthday and she loves your work.”
You just never know where the solutions are likely to come from, but I have faith that as long as we remain open to the abundance the universe provides, all our needs and those of our fur kids will be met.
Our vegetable garden provided the basics and then some. Our goats provided milk and cheese and the piggys… well, we wont go into that, we aren’t vegetarians but they were happy for the time they were with us.
Looking back, I am still impressed with the creative solutions we came up with when there was no money to purchase feed for the animals.
The horses and goats required hay over the winter and our farm was too small and too rocky to grow what we needed, yet they stayed fat and productive and this is how.
In one of my early morning rides on my big pinto horse, Dancer, I noticed several uncut fields of rich grass belonging to our neighbors. When I got home, I phoned them and asked if they were planning to cut and bale hay. Most didn’t have animals and weren’t planning to do anything but continue to let the fields go fallow but if I wanted the hay, I could have it. I then called a friend who had a hay mower and baler and made this arrangement. The owner of the pasture would get one third of the hay to sell, the owner of the mower and baler would get one third and I would get one third just for making a few phone calls. Before long, our hay shed was full with excellent grass hay.
Our goats were so productive I was able to exchange their surplus milk for vegetables we weren’t able grow and even for the services of a massage therapist when my back got sore from lifting all those heavy bales of hay.
I milked our neighbor’s cows for a few summers so that they could take an occasional vacation. With our goat’s milk and the milk from their cows there was plenty to go around. My husband made wonderful cheeses and the heavy Jersey cream from the cow’s milk was a luxury few could afford. I was reminded of that fact when I was in the market and saw strawberries on sale. We had so many strawberries in our garden that they were part of our daily meal to the point of monotony. “Good grief, I’m getting sick of strawberry shortcake,” I said and was met with a scowl from a nearby shopper.
The work was hard and the days were long but we were rewarded for our efforts with the abundance that graced our table and filled the barn with sweet smelling hay… a gift from Mother Earth made possible with a bit of creative problem solving.
Obviously not everyone lives on a farm so these specific solutions wont work for everyone, but the basics are the same. If money is in short supply, accept the challenge and tap into your creative self. Money doesn’t have to be the only medium of exchange. Everyone has something to offer. Child minding, house keeping, tutoring a student, shopping for a ‘shut-in,’ tending someone’s garden for a share, just to name a few.
At Christmas I traded some of my small oil paintings for beautiful artful things friends were making thus providing a variety of gifts we were able to give and some of my artwork was even traded for expensive gourmet coffees and other tasty holiday treats.
The biggest surprise came when we were having particularly tough time. I had all our bills collected in a basket on the kitchen table. While enjoying the excellent gourmet coffee with a friend, she pulled our electric bill from the basket and said, “I’ll pay this, just do a small horse painting for my Mom. It’s her birthday and she loves your work.”
You just never know where the solutions are likely to come from, but I have faith that as long as we remain open to the abundance the universe provides, all our needs and those of our fur kids will be met.
