Time to read 4 minutes
As I have got older, I have learned to value what could be described as “traditional” skills.
I define traditional skills as physical tasks and creations made with one’s hands such as cooking from scratch, gardening, mending, building, making and darning clothes and other such crafts using various, usually old school knowledge and methods.
In the past, most people possessed these skills as a part of life. A way to survive, and tend to the home but sometimes these skills were a familiar trade passed down through the generations.
So are such skills still important in our modern world? I definitely think they are.
We have become very accustomed and reliant on outsourcing our needs. There is definitely no shame in it – if I could, I would definitely outsource some of the more tedious household chores like some of the cleaning!
But at a time when I found my day job somewhat uninspiring, in an effort to bring back some joy to my daily routines and as it were, to “romaticize” my life, I made an effort to live a little bit like my ancestors: I began to cook our meals from scratch, I simplified and ordered my possessions and living space, I began growing our herbs and vegetables, making some of my own personal care products and learning how to knit.
Also prioritising fixing the things we already have- if that was within our skills set before opting to buy replacements.
Further Reading: My article on homesteading for homestead.org here.
Bringing back the joy to everyday
Now, I understand some of these tasks are time consuming or reliant on having access to other things such as a garden or money and the inclination to buy the resources, for example ingredients to make up meals and yarn and various notions for knitting but once the initial outlay is overcome, the payback is immeasurable.
For me knowing how something is created – for example, what goes into my body lotion or healing scalp oil and the food on my plate is something that brings me great joy as it feels a little like self care.
I am not always able to find or afford organic and local food and raw ingredients, but eating simple meals made from usually no more than 3 whole food ingredients, that I season and cook myself using herbs from the garden and spices from the pantry.
The key to me is to just keep things simple. It’s caring for the self in a way that says I know exactly what I am putting into and on my body – as much as I can (I do not tend to make my own spice blends, I certainly do buy table condiments and often buy herb plants from supermarkets or plant nurseries), but hey, I make the effort and I do what I can!
A self-esteem boost
Wearing or gifting a knitted item that I have made myself is good boost to my self esteem.
Knowing that your hands have the ability to create something for nothing is proven to boost feelings of well being and is an excellent outlet for creativity. In 2022, I went through a bad year – my father died, my husband had been made redundant in his job and I was in a job that was uninspiring and I was also dealing with various health issues – so no, not a great year, but the one thing that remained constant was knitting.
The process was a great source of comfort for me – even when I went to the Caribbean to visit my dying father I had a wooly jumper being knit on in my lap in 38 degree celsius heat.
Not only is it a way to occupy the hands and the brain in times for stress, and then I have a usable, unique finished object once it’s done, but also, you can feel the unmistakable warm glow of pride when I wear, eat or use things I have made myself.
Especially when receiving compliments on your handiwork.
Modern life is fast paced and stressful enough anything we can do to pare down and simplify our life by understanding how things work and how things come together, the closer we are to being a little bit more intentional about out daily practices and routines, giving our bodies what it needs, rather than the “extras” that may not be very good for us nor the planet.
Further Reading:
If you would like to read more on the topic https://www.homestead.org/ is a great resource.
All Homesteading 
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