(Note: The following short note was in response to someone worried about their community not being prepared to deal with y2k adversity, and what impact that might have on them as someone who is preparing.)

From: "Valentine Riddell" orenda@orenda-arts.org
Subject: Re: Urban Warriors
Date: Sun, 21 Mar 1999

You know what? I'll bet we can create the reality we want to experience. In fact, I *know* we can. An example:

I was deeply worried about [all this] and convinced that nobody in our weird little northern New Mexico village would listen to my concerns. I plunged ahead, though, and tried to get the community behind the idea of simple measures like community gardens, a neighbor-buddy system, home medical preparedness, a generator for the town's water pump, and so on. For a couple of months it seemed that my efforts had been in vain, until one neighbor decided that he liked the idea of a community garden, and offered the use of his large back yard. Before I knew it, several other neighbors became interested, and began offering gifts of seeds, manure, labor, expertise, etc. Meanwhile I discovered that a very wealthy neighbor, unbeknownst to the rest of us, had already started laying in enough supplies to take care of the entire village for at least 3 weeks! Now every few days I hear of someone else who wants to pitch in and join in this community project. We figure if Y2K is as bad as some fear we will at least be able to feed people, and if not, we'll start a Farmers' Market!

Not that we won't have plenty of ups and downs around this thing, plenty of times when we're afraid and feel all alone, plenty of room for doubt-- but honestly, I do believe that if we just do what we feel we *can* do in each moment and keep a positive outlook, we will create the *best* possible scenario for ourselves.

Take care,

Valentine

-- Bill (billdale@lakesnet.net), March 22, 1999