Wednesday, June 3, 2015

Survival Mind Set: Could you pull the trigger?

Many people have guns in their homes. They may have been handed down through the family as heirlooms. They are used as protection from unwanted intruders. They are used for target shooting as a sport. They are used for hunting, whether for subsistence or sport as well.

When pondering what life would be like if our society collapsed one must ask themselves could I pull a trigger on another human? Would I hesitate? Could I live with that decision?

When I wrote my novel Day After Disaster it was one question I was constantly asking myself. My main character, Erika is forced to kill many times in the book. The first time she did, it was out of pure adrenaline charged justice. After stumbling onto a horrific scene she takes matters into her own hands and takes the life of the attacker for the safety of another human being. The second time she kills it is a mercy killing. The victim is dying anyway and she must kill one for the safety of another. She justifies her actions with honest intentions of saving another.

In between these instances she kills again and again but those are battle charged actions. The emotions of the moment get wrapped up into adrenaline. The next time she kills in cold blood it is because looters are going for supplies located in wagons in their caravan. These people were not attacking anything but stuff but the decision was made to take their lives anyway. The decision is one that Erika morally struggles with. In the novel, times have changed and people must do what they must to survive.

As a woman raised under the Roman Catholic rules, taking another's life is something that I can't imagine having to do. We were taught to be giving and kind, to take care of one another and show mercy even when hurt by another. But without our conveniences of modern society how would people act? Would they band together for the sake of all or would they take your food and leave your family to starve?

As you can see writing my book didn't solve any of these moral issues that we may have to face one day. Our society is fragile. Our food supply is artificial and our reliance upon electricity is heavy. I would like to hope that people would think about that now before anything does happen. Do you know your neighbors? Would you be able to count on them if you needed to? People power is essential to the individual's survival. Get to know your community and start appreciating the people in your life.

Sara F. Hathaway
Sara F. Hathaway is the author of the The Changing Earth Series: Day After Disaster and Without Land. She also hosts The Changing Earth Podcast which blends her fictional stories with educational survival tips. Sara grew up in the country where she developed a profound interest in the natural world around her. After graduating with honors from The California State University of Sacramento with a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration, she launched into a career in business management. In her fictional novels her research and experience with survival techniques and forgotten life-sustaining methods of the generations past come to the forefront in a action packed adventures. She has used her background in business management to pave new roads for fictional authors to follow and she delights in helping other achieve the same success. She currently lives with her husband and two sons in California where she is at work on the sequel to her first two novels. For more information and a free copy of “The Go-Bag Essentials” featuring everything you need to have to leave your home in a disaster visit: www.authorsarafhathaway.com
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