What does it mean to Make Ready?"

Making yourself ready is the process of preparing for any challenge life presents. The idea of preparing to deal with life is something we write off, assuming away that the systems we depend upon daily will always be there, just as the sun will always rise. This belief, grounded in a misplaced trust, leads to complacency (more on this in a future post) that leaves us and our loved ones vulnerable to situations we might otherwise be able to navigate if we were better prepared. Thus, to Make Ready means to develop a process of habits that leads towards being able to endure difficult circumstances when our systems inevitably fail.

I recognize that last sentence sounds pessimistic. However, every year during storm season, people lose power, water, and access to food. North Carolina currently has all these conditions and worse still. As a result, folks who live in these regions tend to board windows, stock up on provisions, and in some cases, purchase backup generators that will allow them to power key appliances, such as refrigerators and lights. These folks Make Ready because their environment provides them an annual reminder that the systems we depend upon can break at any time. But, what about those of us who rarely have such experiences? Why should we bother to Make Ready when we don’t live in such areas?

This is the mindset that underscores complacency and many of us suffer from it to some degree. My family and I certainly did for years. Sure, we get rain and the occasional freeze (for Texas a freeze is classified as anything below 70 degrees) but generally speaking, our dependencies don’t disappear and when they do, as was the case yesterday, it is only for a short period of time. Yet, we should always ask ourselves, what would we do if the outage lasted longer? How long would we and those we love survive?

Think of readiness as a sort of insurance that you invest in hoping you’ll never need to use it while at the same time being grateful for it when you do. Unlike car insurance however, it is difficult to understand what sort of readiness coverage you need. Part of Make Ready is to demystify readiness by breaking it down into five domains: Physical, Mental, Emotional, Spiritual, and Practical. These domains are separate but connected, coexisting on a continuum, and working together to Make Ready. Think of them as interlocking fields of fire and provide you a defense against most challenges you’ll face.

Thanks for reading.