The moon was vibrant orange last night as it rose over the distant horizon. I don’t think I have ever seen an orange moon. I stood there enchanted, watching it, the cool breeze ruffling my nightgown. Above, I watched the stars click on across the milky way as the sun finally sank wearily behind the plateau that looms over our cottage. Our little village of five-hundred slept then, as the deer came out of the brush and the mountain lion skulked down the rockface.

We have moved back to southern Colorado, our favorite place. We are setting up our little homestead here, in an old 1910 coal miner’s cottage in town. We have a small yard that overlooks the great Wet mountains and hills of junipers and limestone. The air smells fresh and hawks and turkey vultures veer steadily on the wind.

We do not have a large plot of land any longer, but as I have shown in this blog over the last thirteen years, one can homestead anywhere. All of my children have a desire to homestead. We live minutes from our youngest daughter and her husband and our two granddaughters. They are homesteading in a rented duplex where they grow a lot of food. We both are planning to get chickens. Today I am going over there to can with her. We are putting up broth and making dandelion jelly. A recipe I had to find and found it on this very blog! (I use this blog as much as anyone!)

If you have a desire for a simpler life (not lazier- simpler), then look no further than yourself. There are very few people that are living completely off-grid, out in the middle of nowhere, and even they are reliant on neighbors and store bought sugar! The best way to start homesteading is to look at your shopping list. What is on there that you can make yourself? Ask yourself, “Do I want to make my own bread? Can I make my own pasta? Do I have space for chickens?” Then ask, “Is it worth it? Is it possible?” Just do one thing at a time. I pay $4 a quart for organic vegetable broth. A canner and jars will pay for themselves in no time.

Then look at your to-do list. Ask, “Can I get a clothes line? Do I want to hand wash my clothes? Can I grow a garden? Can I sew my own skirt?” Is it worth it?

Any yes answer is the beginning of your homesteading venture, or continuation of it! There is great joy in a job well done, done with your own two hands. When you purchase something, see if you can get one that is non-electric.

There was a night I’ll never forget, when Doug and I were quietly reading by oil lamp, the cuckoo clock our source of time, the night outdoors filled with the songs of frogs, when I noticed how dark it was outside. The power had gone out all over the town and the stars were so bright. But Doug and I never even noticed that the power had gone out.

This morning I watched the rosy golden light engulf Pikes Peak and fill the air with color as birdsong welcomed it. I drank my coffee on the porch. There is nothing better than the simple life.