January 7, 2025

I’m not a fan of New Year’s resolutions. It simply doesn’t work for me or most people. What does work is deciding to change now (whenever that may be). As time goes by and I grow older, I have began to acknowledge that working on oneself is one of the most important components to becoming a happier, resilient human. Perhaps anthropologically speaking that wasn’t the case, but with our modern “busy” lives I’m not sure there is a more important pursuit. There are so many distractions that can corrupt the mind in our modern world. I say this because I believe that a person must help themselves before they can help other people. Meaning that the self comes first, and only then a greater purpose can be found by helping others. I have spent a considerable amount of time over the past few years working on me. Mostly out of necessity and desire to be a better father to my three sons, a better husband to my wife and a better servant to my community. .

My life’s philosophy is closest with that of Stoicism and Zen Buddhism. Ryan Holiday, author, owner at the Painted Porch bookstore in Bastrop Texas and podcaster of the Daily Stoic, recently outlined some key stoic practices/habits that you can actually use. The short, simple list is: have a morning routine, journal everyday, read everyday, and stay physically active (not just a book philosopher). These are simple habits and to the point. There is so much more to Stoicism, but having good habits is critical to having a healthy mind and body. Implementing these habits has brought to me a sense of self awareness and peace. I still have my mental and physical daemons, as we all do, but each day is progress. I talk about Stoicism because the practice has had a profound effect on my life and I encourage everyone to seek its wisdom. What a better way to start the New Year than to begin your studies in Stoicism.

With that being said, my old blog - The Pastoralist was unpublished for the past few years. As I have grown intellectually I have realized how little I know, and how much there is to learn. I felt like I didn’t want to give people the wrong ideas, so I unpublished the website. Recently I have decided that is for the reader to choose. This blog is my attempt to express my own ideas in a journal format. Thus, I have published the website once again. Some of this content is no longer relevant, specifically some of the tools and materials I used for electric fencing for our livestock. I will update those as time progresses, but the blog is mostly going to be my thoughts and learnings about homesteading and living a good life. My focus will be building resilience and broadly covering farming, homesteading, health, economics, finances, society and culture. I might even throw in some reminisces and reflections from the past. I will publish a daily blog/journal and also a weekly YouTube video.

My hope is that we can all build greater resilience within ourself, our family and community. I hope that this blog may help someone on their journey in life, as it has helped me. Until next time, thanks for reading - Travis