Preparing for End Times with a Bodhisattva Mind
a curated list for the new moon
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New Moon /June 14, 2026
If you’ve followed me for a while, you may know I have apocalyptic leanings. This isn’t always the handiest trait—I mean, who really wants to think about the end of the world? It’s not all that different than death, the [apparent] end of our individual existence. For many folks, contemplating the impermanence of our reality isn’t tops on their list. (Thank goodness for Chloe Hope who bucks that trend with her Death & Birds!)
For others of us, though, we sense these endings—big and small—and it goes against our grain to gloss over them.
Here’s where things can veer off in a couple of directions.
If fear is the dominant driver of our apocalyptic concerns, we may turn into scary preppers who arm ourselves to the teeth and barricade ourselves in a bunker, amidst piles of packaged rations.
But if you want to prepare for ending (aka transformative) times without getting caught up in that machismo, fearful energy, you do have other options. This new moon letter is here to give you hope as well as solid resources to prepare for falling-apart scenarios.
1. EMERGENCY PLAYBOOK
Fortunately, an excellent new book is just about to come out that speaks exactly to our concerns and needs. The Emergency Playbook (Ten Speed Press) by Amy Edelman and Chris Begly is a comprehensive guide to preparing for and surviving emergency situations, from wildfires, flash floods, and extreme heat to power outages, social unrest, and the next pandemic—without the fear mentality.
The book will be published June 23 but you can pre-order it now on Bookshop. (That’s an affiliate link; I receive a small percentage when you buy the book with that link.)
Kelly Hayes recently interviewed Amy and Chris about the book on her podcast, Movement Memos. I listened to the fascinating 70+ minute recording and here are some of my favorite quotes and takeaways:
Kelly introduced Emergency Playbook by saying:
One thing I appreciate about the framing of this book is that preparedness isn’t approached as a consumer identity, or baked into fantasies about leaving other people behind. It’s a process that begins with some very ordinary questions that we should ask ourselves now, instead of grappling with them later, after a crisis has begun. Like, when the power goes out, who needs to be checked on first? If our phones stop working, where do people gather? If someone’s medication has to stay cold, who has a generator or access to refrigeration? If people have to leave quickly, do they know where they’re going, or what they’re bringing with them?
Chris, an archaeologist, wilderness survival instructor, and anthropology professor, sums up the situation really well:
“One of the problems with the sort of doomsday prepper presentation of these things is that it really does turn a lot of people off because the sorts of things that are being advocated are really just not part of a lot of people’s lives. And when we look historically, we see that the focus needs to be on community and that what really gets you through these problems include things like empathy and understanding and a sense of justice and generosity.”
Something interesting I learned on the podcast was “the rule of three,” a core tenet of survival strategies. It goes like this: we can survive about three minutes without air, three hours without shelter in extreme conditions, three days without water. We can actually go few weeks without food. Knowing this timeline helps us to avoid panic, prioritize certain supplies and actions, and organize ourselves and communities to make good decisions in dire situations.
2. Margaret Killjoy’s Go-Bag List
Substack author Margaret Killjoy shares the contents of her 72-hour Go-Bag in this article. As she notes, this is “the bag you grab if your house is on fire or the forest is on fire or the fascists are en route.”
Margaret’s article is less a packing list and more a guide to help you think through and build your own Go Bag. Again the emphasis here isn’t coming from a “you must do this or you’ll die” attitude, but simply a practical stance of being ready for whatever might happen.
Margaret goes into lots of helpful detail, but it all starts with this:
Start with the basics: a backpack, some water, some food, some warm clothes, some underwear. Start adding some things: basic survival, hygiene, first aid, digital copies of documents. A flashlight. A knife. Pepper spray. A powerbank and phone charging cable. And just go from there.
3. A Supply Chain Shortage Could Be a Revolution!
My Substack friend and ecstatic wanderer April Isaacs posted such an insightful Note earlier in June. I really appreciate how April reframes the practice of “prepping” as an opportunity to simplify our lives in a way which benefits the planet (and our own mental health). Here it is:
I’m seeing a lot of prepper articles urging people to stock up now in anticipation of the upcoming supply chain shortages. I get the beans, oils, rice and lentils. But the paper products, hair & skin care products, plastic bags? This is a great time to give up decadence and toxins & find natural alternatives to the things we think we can’t live without and are meanwhile killing us and the planet.
For example, why not stock up on: bidets, antimicrobial cloths, handkerchiefs, oils, baking soda, vinegar. People used to live this way without paper products and plastic. We have just gotten so used to the lie that we need it & it’s not healthy unless we scrub our bodies, homes, and clothes with chemicals.
If you camp regularly in the wilderness or live off-grid, you already know how little you actually need. A supply chain shortage could be a revolution.
*** 3 Things You Can Do Now ***
What I took away from sifting through these helpful articles and notes is that first and foremost, we can enter into preparation from a mind of remembering our interdependence with all beings. The most effective survival strategies integrate cooperation and compassion. If you’ve mindfully prepared yourself, it’s more likely that you’ll be a calm presence to support others. The lone wolf scenario is a recipe for even more disaster.
Along with that, I picked up these three very practical steps that are pretty easy to implement right away:
• Get to know your neighbors
When things fall apart—through climate crisis, energy meltdowns, pandemics, economic fall-outs—it’s likely that the people you’ll be in the thick of it with will be your neighbors. Now is the time to start nurturing those relationships, even if you don’t think you’ve got much in common. Can you start hosting a monthly coffee-and-pastry get-together at your house for the folks on your street? Can you check in on an elderly neighbor to make sure she’s okay and see if she needs anything from the store? Can you start a contact list for people on your street, gathering phone numbers and email addresses, and share this with everyone? Make sure you print this list, don’t just rely on a digital version which you may not be able to access if the power and cellular connections go out. Small steps now make a big difference later.
• Stock up your mask supply
Keeping in mind that the first of the rule of three is that we can only survive three minutes without air, it makes sense to have supplies in place to protect you in various scenarios that involve air: smoke from wildfires that could impact your breathing, airborne viruses, toxic fumes. This is a good time to make sure you’ve got an adequate supply of N95 and P100 masks. Cloth masks and bandanas won’t cut it. Here’s a highly rated KN95 you might consider ordering.
• Fill up jugs with drinkable water
Again, the rule of three comes in handy. We can survive far longer without food than clean water, so focus on your water supply first. The rule of thumb is to store at least 1 gallon of water per person, per day, with a minimum 3-day supply.
I’d love to hear your thoughts on preparation, both the mental/spiritual aspect as well as the practical aspect. Have you been taking any of these steps or other steps you think are important?
Love this. I appreciate your voice and approach as always. To share a resource for anybody who sees this, I personally have followed Chris at City Prepping for a few years now. He's got a YouTube Channel where he will cover practical things to do, current/weekly news events that night impact things. He always ends with "a word of encouragement." Recently, he said something in the spirit of: we prep to live, we don't prep to stay in a cycle of fear and paralysis. It was a helpful reminder for me, and I feel like the vibe is similar in this post. Thank you!
This post and the information you provide are so valuable, Maia. I wonder if you've ever connected with Susan Harley, who writes Courageous Conversations. I think you both would have a lot to share with one another on this topic.