self suchickency

an excerpt from Wendell Berry's Sex, Economy, Freedom and Community:

In a healthy community, people will be richer in their neighbors, in neighborhood, in the health and pleasure of neighborhood, than in their bank accounts. It is better, therefore, even if the cost is greater, to buy near at hand than to buy at a distance. It is better to buy from a small, privately owned local store than from a chain store. It is better to buy a good product than a bad one. Do not buy anything you don't need. Do as much as you can for yourself. If you cannot do something for yourself, see if you have a neighbor who can do it for you.

I find the idea of self sufficiency kind of romantic--in the idealistic sense of the word; there is something wonderful about changing the oil in your car, submitting your own taxes, and fixing problems around your house. Or for me: making yogurt and granola, mixing batches of laundry soap, and butchering chickens.

Last Friday our family clan gathered for another round of slaughtering to Papa's motto "Boo-tcher, boo-tcher, boo-tcher," which never fails to get a chuckle from his kids. This is probably the 4th or 5th time our family has participated in this endeavor, and everyone agreed the system was a well-oiled machine. Our process: catch chickens, cut heads off, skin broilers, de-gut naked birds, clean bodies, toss in ice water, transfer in coolers to "processing station," divide into pieces, clean again, stuff into bags, vacuum seal, and place chicken in freezer. 135 chickens and 7 hours later, the job is finished. My contribution: 2/3 de-gutting, 1/3 child-caring.

The following Monday a crew of 4 piled out of pick-up trucks wielding shovels, ladders, and cords to the motto "one roof per day" as they checked their tool belts and dug in. Everyone knew his job and executed it; it was a smooth system. Their process: tear off shingles, change out moldy plywood, replace vents, roll out and tack down tar paper, nail gun shingles, pick up renegade trash, blow off roof debris, sweep sidewalks, walk a metal detector through the grass. New architectural shingles and 10 hours later, the roof is finished. My contribution: 1/3 serving homemade zucchini bread, 2/3 mama pointing and watching.

I sometimes wish I did more for myself instead of hiring out work, but then I remember the idea of investing in community and blessing others with work. I'm glad Berry addresses the inability to do these things for my sake, and maybe for yours. I tried my hand at tearing off shingles once when I was young, but I think I'll stick to de-gutting chickens and baking bread.