Never Being Lost

Many years ago, my grandfather asked a Native American Elder, “Is it true that Indians never get lost?”  The Elder thought for a moment before replying, “Yes, it’s true! Indian never get lost!  Tepee get lost but Indian never get lost!”  This is the attitude of every accomplished, survival minded person.  The Elder was making a statement that his people were comfortable wherever they were and could make do with what was at hand in their environment.  It’s similar to saying that “Wherever you go, there you are!”  This is the thought behind the name, WayPoint Survival.  Wherever you are, whatever Way Point is your location, you are able to survive.  Everybody’s got to be Somewhere, so make the best of your location and if possible, even enjoy it!

Getting lost is no fun, unless you are trying to get lost! Often survival minded individuals will purposefully get lost for the express purpose of testing their mettle against the wilderness.  It forces you to use the resources at hand, being careful to hoard those resources carefully and steward them so that there will be some for the next day and the day after that and so on.  It forces you to adjust to your environment not fight against it, to fall into the natural rhythms of the natural world.  It forces you to use your skills and identify problem areas that you wouldn’t discover practicing in your back yard.

It should be noted that this should only be tried after you have truly mastered the many skills of Fire, Water, Shelter, Signalling and Navigation as well as Food Procurement.  You should also always let someone know the approximate area in which you are going to be “lost” in as well as the length of time that you will be testing your skills after which they should send in Search and Rescue.  An additional option is to purchase and take a Personal Locator Beacon with you (known as a PLB) which uses satellite technology to alert emergency personnel as to your specific location if needed.   Discovery Channel star Survivorman, Les Stroud, carried one of these on his many adventures, surviving and filming himself in various conditions and climates around the world.  His was probably one of the most authentic survival shows as he was truly alone for a week at a time during the first three seasons, and two, ten day scenarios on season four.

The above title is somewhat tongue in cheek.  It is possible to be very skilled and still be very lost!  However, in most of the developed world, if you are able to travel in a straight line, you will eventually encounter some sort of road or civilization.  There are areas, of course, where there are large tracts of undeveloped land, such as desert, forest, tundra or mountain areas that a person could be truly lost for quite some time.  This is why preparation is the key to survival.  Knowledge weighs nothing and you can carry a lot of it.  Remember, the more you know, the less you need to carry!  The idea is to become so skilled and self-reliant that getting lost is not frightening to you any more.  Then, just like the Native American Elder stated, your tepee may get lost but you are never lost!

This has deep spiritual meaning as well.  Being prepared with spiritual disciplines and practicing your Christian living when times are good, as well as continued prayer and/or fasting, keeps you from getting spiritually lost in the jungle of a sinful world.  The Holy Ghost is like a compass always pointing True North, always guiding us into the Truth.  You may well say and believe that when the Presence of the Spirit of God is in you, you will never be lost!

James B.

PS. You can check out my website where you can set up training for many of these skills at www.waypointsurvival.com and look at and order my custom knives at www.benderknifeworks.com.