Contents of one ‘survival’ pack-
The pack, which consisted of-
Government Issue 1945 combat pack (I have seen larger butt packs),
mounted on the shoulder straps from a Vietnam era military pack
with a too-small, for me or my father, web hip belt, circa 1978.
The insides contained-
A sewing kit with one rusty needle, a spool of dental floss and three safety
pins, one bent
A metal square, which I found out later was supposed to be a mirror
A bad copy of a Swiss army knife that had broken bits
Matches (the kind that are water proof and strike proof)
Rags, I think they were T-shirts in a former life
Water purification tablets that expired in 1982, and have not been made since
1980
Candy (I regretted eating a piece)
A plastic whistle
A squished roll of TP that had gotten wet at some point (papier mache anyone?)
And other seemingly odd and badly maintained bits.
I was thinking seriously of throwing out the whole thing, but something in
me said, “NO! You could use that...”
I listened to that voice, and it has been a backslide ever since.
With the pack spread all over the floor of the living room, I started down
the path of the ‘survivalist’ mentality. I was baffled at what my
father had collected, and had not used in many years. The philosophy of his
survival pack was one of whatever was available, and cheap. Unfortunately,
this meant broken, ill-fitting objects that might or might not help you survive.
The first thing I did was to throw out anything that was rusty, broken or
just too out of date. That meant most of the contents of the pack. And I was
thinking of tossing the actual pack, but I decided that I would keep that,
for right then. I still have the ‘45 pack as the main part of my survival
pack, but it is not the only thing I use.
It has become almost a game, a mental as well as physical game to see what
I can do with the pack. Over the years it has changed, evolved to a backpack
that I am able to use without cringing, too much. With extra items, like cooking
gear, (Thorbjorn would completely forget something as basic as FOOD) I have
taken small excursions, and been quite comfortable. But then again, I have
my Mother in me, too.