Whether you’re a male or female (or somewhere in between)—survival skills are something essential to, well, survival. Younger generations (and I’m guilty of this) have gotten used to the conveniences that innovation has brought us and have lost touch with survival skills that our ancestors knew so well and thrived off of. The modern day system allows for the average American to have access to everything from public utilities such as water and electricity—to pretty much anything you can think of at the local grocery store to satisfy any food craving possible.
All those privileges are what make modern day so much easier, but it’s still important to know some basic survival skills just in case. The better connection someone has with the Earth, the better they’re going to treat it– so it’s important to continue to teach our children how to do things like grow and appreciate real food, create and mend clothing, and other tricks like navigational skills; so that they’re always prepared for whatever life throws at them.
You don’t have to go to the extreme like some celebrities do on NBC’s Running Wild with Bear Grylls and put yourself into extreme situations to learn a thing or two about survival, but knowing basic skills may come in handy one day. Hopefully you won’t be stuck in the middle of the forest or lost in the jungle like Ricky Megee who, in 2006, survived 71 days in the Australian outback by making basic shelter and eating frogs and snakes. But if you do ever find yourself in a compromising situation at least you’ll be glad you took the time to read this list and reconnect with some basic ways of survival.
There are many things on this list that our grandparents and great-grandparents knew how to do and used on a daily basis to provide for their families; some are important to the past, while others are still essential to today. All of these skills have one thing in common: they all provide a connection to our past that is important for all generations to remember.