Lessons from the country

Have you recently taken up jam making, or thought about getting a brood of chooks? Countrywoman Georgie Robertson muses on some lessons from the bush to help her city sisters when times are tough.

- Georgie Robertson

Every morning I go for a walk around our farm. It has been frosty of late, the early morning sky brindled with fingers of winter. I breathe in the smell of dust and eucalyptus and am alone with my thoughts, before the busyness of the day unfurls and sweeps me in its wake. It gives me time to reflect.

It has been said that crises release memories, relinquishing the collective wisdom stored from eras gone by. Lately, I’ve had vivid flashbacks of my grandmother, her relationship with the land and her stories of adversity. A farmer’s wife, she was moulded by the Depression and two world wars. I remember her simple tastes, her grit and her frugality. “Watch the pennies and the dollars will take care of themselves,” she would say.

In these economically challenging times, there’s been an increased interest in living simply and more self-sufficiently, picking up lessons from our grandmothers and our neighbours in the country. While the idea of keeping backyard chickens and stocking up on mason jars may have seemed quaint even a few months ago, many of these old-fashioned practices are now enjoying a resurgence. The desire to grow, to produce and to make things from scratch is coming full circle. And for mums like me, living in the country, our experiences and memories of handed-down traditions are becoming more precious, more useful, and even sought after by our city sisters.

Best beer damper

A recipe from my camp oven-mad husband, Scott.

3¾ cups self-raising flour

1½ tsp bicarbonate of soda

1½ tsp fine salt

2 tbsp butter or margarine, softened

375ml unfiltered beer