What Does It Mean to Homestead: A Perspective Collaboration

Do you desire to live a more simple, heartfelt life where you feel good and whole at the end of each day?

More and more, especially this last year, we’re hearing about homesteading and providing for one’s self. But what does it mean to homestead?

I love this question! Why?

Because homesteading is a spectrum of knowledge and skills and when you ask different homesteaders what it means to homestead, you’ll get different perspectives on what homesteading means to them!

To help answer the question best, I’ve teamed up with 11 amazing female homesteaders to share what homesteading means to each of us!

What Does It Mean To Homestead: In One Word

What does homesteading mean for me, or really, how has homesteading changed my life and my family’s lives?

If I could boil it down to one word, it would be empowerment.

Homesteading, in part, is learning to provide for yourself. There’s this addictive ripple effect that happens when you learn how to do one thing, no matter how small.

When you realize how much you can do, and how important it is to do for yourself, the excitement and desire to do more grows.

Homesteading allows you to take your power back that’s been lost through the industrialization and commercialization of our society.

For me, homesteading means empowerment in three specific areas of my life. There are more but to me, this is why I homestead.

What Does It Mean To Homestead: Health

When you talk to a lot of homesteaders, many of them come into this life because of some unresolved health issue.

Its through learning how to make their own products, grow their own food, or use natural remedies that they begin to heal.

Even just living more simply and providing for oneself can reduce the mental and physical strain of the go-go-go of today’s world.

When you begin to understand what toxic chemical ingredients are found in our every day products and put into our food, many people, like myself, find a huge passion in using healthy alternatives and educating others.

Growing a garden and cooking from scratch has this satisfying vibe to it. After a time, it no longer becomes ‘work’.

Being in nature, caring for animals, knowing exactly where your food is coming from just provides this restorative connectedness to the world of nature around us. We are nature.

Our society has become so far removed from that innate connection providing for yourself gives. When you learn and take those baby steps, the healing that takes place is oh, so miraculous! Even mending your own clothes or cooking a meal a week is a starting point.

What Does It Mean to Homestead: Teaching The Next Generation

Education starts at home. Many, many survival and self-sufficiency skills are being lost as the older generations who grew up in this lifestyle, pass on. Sadly, their skills and wisdom with them.

By homesteading, we’re keeping the knowledge alive and rejuvenating it. Some of us are lucky (and grateful) to have a friend or family member to teach us, but as homesteaders, it’s our duty to not let these skills die off.

In order to make a homestead work, the whole family needs to chip in and do their share.

This means that kids learn from a young age how to take care of themselves and others. Whether that be cooking meals, doing laundry, building (or more often repairing) something, growing food to eat – whatever it is, they learn important life skills.

As homesteaders, we are also empowering our kids by showing them they have value. Without their help, a homestead cannot run. They learn that they have an important role, no matter how young.

We are teaching the next generation how to be free thinkers, ask questions, step out and do things on their own, in their own way and on their terms.

Teaching them how to be leaders, be independent, put in hard work and understand the value in it. How the best rewards are not instantaneous and how joy and beauty can be found in the simplest of things.

But most importantly, through homesteading we are instilling in them a self-confidence in their skills, a willingness to put in the hard work, and a sense of satisfying responsibility for the direction of their own life.

What Does It Mean to Homestead: Community

When you start homesteading, you often desire a mentor to teach you how to can or ferment or sew. The skills that used to be taught by generations of family living together or closeby.

In today’s world it can be very hard to feel that sense of connection with other people. We are often so busy keeping up with our lives and putting our “best face” out there.

One of the best things about being a homesteader is finding your community of like-minded people. A community who understand what you’re doing, why, and can help you overcome any obstacles you’ll face.

People who understand your obsession with chickens and sourdough. Who could talk all day with you about removing toxic chemicals from your home. Because they get it.

Being part of the homesteading community, means you get to turn around and help teach someone else what you’ve learned.

We were all beginners at some point and we all have a passion to not let these self-sufficiency skills die. But to actually grow the numbers and strength of the homesteading community.

Gosh, to me, the homesteading community is like coming home! A sense of belonging and understanding. Being seen and heard and supported in your efforts to do better for your family and the world.

This community of like-minded, supportive people is like no other.

What Does It Mean To Homestead: A Different Perspective

Now you’ve heard just a small tidbit of what homesteading means to me, but there’s so much more. As promised, there are perspectives some other amazing and inspiring homesteading woman to share what homesteading means to us.

This post is in collaboration with:

• The Church Street Homestead
• Simply Rooted Farmhouse
• Little Acre Farm
• Living Like We’re Country
• A Handsome Homestead
• The Stylish Homestead
• A Mountain Farmhouse
• Our Gabled Home
• The Homestead Challenge
• Simply JAD Farm

I loved hearing what homesteading means to each of them and I know you will too!

Go give their posts a read, comment and show your love by sharing and following on social media.

(Click the image to read each post)

I hope enjoyed learning about what it means to homestead and have found some more inspiration and mentors in the homestead community.

Be sure to snag access to some awesome homesteading resources below including:

What homesteading skills we used to build our savings to $250,000 by the time we were 28.

Much love and homestead vibes!

Steph.

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