First things first, FAMILY MEETING… Your kids had been taught better than to talk about what you did or did not have in your home. As bad as their breach might have been, yours was worse. However, we had to all get on the same page from this point forward.

 

   A quick review of the precautions that every family should be taking before a disaster event occurs but that were even more important now, afterward, was conducted. From now on, all doors were to remain locked and no excuses would be accepted. The only things that this family had were in and around this house. If we aren’t careful about who has access to them, we might be the one’s doing without. An abbreviated version of the exchange with the neighbor was given to the boys to show them how desperate otherwise good people could act.

 

   Alright, now we all have to get down to business. The boys were given their task and it would be overseen by Mom. The entire pile of firewood was to be brought into the garage and re-stacked neatly. This was to be accomplished via the back door rather than coming around to the front of the house in plain sight of all of the neighbors. Yes, it would be a whole lot more trouble but it wouldn’t do to have everyone see EXACTLY what they had.

 

   While the others were getting this done, you had the chance to get a good inventory done in the garden shed. It would be important to determine what else, if anything, would need to be relocated to the house. The mental picture of medieval towns-people rolling everything up and heading for the protection of the castle at the first sign of an enemy attack, came to mind. Meanwhile, you continued to fight an internal battle with yourself about not over re-acting!

 

   The family wasn’t real thrilled about the job they were given but they did get it done in record time. Your wife had allowed the use of the wheel barrel to get the firewood through the house. She laid out some old broken down cardboard boxes to keep the family room carpet from getting any dirtier than absolutely necessary. You identified a few items that would also need to be moved in from the shed but overall, the items were out there because they didn’t really belong in the house. Fuel for the generator, kerosene heater and a variety of other fuel cans. An assortment of garden tools and the makings for a decent sized garden were stored there too. Those shouldn’t be of a high theft value and the shed will be locked up tight to protect the fuel reserves.  There were also back-up versions of the camping gear that you were currently using inside that could stay. In the back corner, under an old tarp, was a Vietnam era foot locker trunk. This was the real target of your search.

 

   The contents were carefully prepared and stored away over 15 years ago. What lay inside hadn’t seen the light of day since long before the move to this house. You had known the time would eventually come when you would be glad that you had taken the opportunity to make the purchase and also had decided to break the law and not voluntarily turn it over to the authorities a few years back per state law.

 

   The small key had been riding around on your key ring for all these years and slipped into the key-way as though it had been doing it everyday. A flip of your wrist and the lock fell open. As you cracked open the top portion of the trunk an old familiar smell wafted out to meet your nose. It was impossible to mistake – gun oil! You had carefully cleaned and oiled the rifle before sliding it into the special sack designed for long term storage. Even in the low light of the shed, you could see that it was as good as new. Slowly, you broke the seal on the sack and slid the gun out into your waiting hands. It felt good to hold the well designed rifle again. It was of a common design and you had fired many of its kind over the early years of your life before their ownership became very costly and then outright prohibited.

 

   On close inspection everything looked to be in new condition and easily fit back together just as you remembered it should. The entire contents of the trunk looked as though the years had passed lightly. Ammunition and spare magazines, accessories and even a stock of repair parts – all present and accounted for. You never had any intention of going off to fight on some distant battlefield but you would defend your family and it’s ability to survive, if it ever did come to that!

 

   Carefully, you took the rifle and other contents of the trunk into the house. After you checked that the wheel barrel and gloves, etc. were returned to their appointed spots, you felt like you could relax just a little bit. It would be dark soon and that hotly contested firewood would come in handy as you had every intent of building a fire this evening.

 

   Your wife found you and explained that she moved most of the pantry items out of the kitchen and down into the garage storage area. She explained that if someone were to gain access to the home they would certainly be looking in the kitchen first. Food being the primary concern voiced out on the street corner. It would be a little less convenient for her to prepare the meals but she could cope.

 

   The conversation surrounding the new pantry arrangements was wrapping up, when there was a knock at the front door. You looked at each other as if to get the others permission to respond to the sound… The prospect of this being simply a neighborly visit or even another plea for help with a little food were slim… The way this day was going, you weren’t at all interested in having another altercation with a short sighted, demanding neighbor who felt entitled to share your preps. It was with great care that you walked to the front door, careful to not step on the spot of floor that always let out a loud creak. Slowly, you move closer until you could see out the peep hole…

  

Prepper