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<strong>My youngest daughter has started carrying around what she calls a Survivalist Kit.</strong>

I don't know if it's a subconscious reaction to our times of war and uncertainty, or if she just has an overactive imagination and wants to be prepared for any adventure or mishap that might arise. (I do know it was inspired, in part, by Kate, her favorite character in the series of books <a href="http://www.hachettebookgroup.com/features/mysteriousbenedictsociety/index.html">The Mysterious Benedict Society</a>.)

Whatever the impulse, she has gathered an amazing array of resources that all fit magically into—or attach onto—a small, red drawstring pouch, about four-by-four inches. First aid supplies. String. Miniature working tools. Bobby- and safety-pins. Vitamin C and Fanta Grape chapstick. A very small strobe light. A needle, thread and scissors. A tiny notebook and pencil stub. Candy, quarters, and a miniature water supply, contained in a reclaimed 3.4-ounce Pure Michigan Maple Syrup jug. Everything is somehow bundled up and attached to her belt loop, and she's ready to go.

Except for the final two items she recently declared she was still missing: Her miniature book of prayers and some Tobasco Sauce. <strong>Because what hardship or unpleasant bind could not somehow be addressed with prayer or hot sauce?</strong> Just think—everything from seriously bland food to a run-in with the enemy could be handled with either prayer, hot sauce, or both.
<h4>What happens to our Survivalist Kits when we grow up?</h4>
I love this kind of intense imaginative play. It often crosses my mind how much I would have LOVED playing with my girls when I was 9 or 10.

Since I'm nearly 30 years past that point, I'm left looking at the adult I became, which leads me to wonder <strong>"What might I want in my Survivalist Kit today?"</strong>

I realize many women would claim they carry such a kit with them every day, in the form of a purse. It's true, we're often well-prepared, but I would suggest that our imaginations are a bit too limited when we decide what should go into our purses. <strong>We don't fully envision all of the sticky situations life might throw our way, beyond the unwelcomed headache or broken fingernail.</strong>

Or maybe we carry many of the right tools but we are too traditional about how they can be used. Lipstick, for instance, is only thought of as something that brightens our faces, but couldn't it also be used to mark a clue or leave a secret message?. And what about gum? Is it only a portable breath freshener, or also a handy adhesive? Or even a way to leave a signature scent trail?
<h4>What happens to life's challenges as we grow up?</h4>
What I'm really finding, though, as I consider my Survivalist Kit, is this: <strong>For the most part, the world throws grownups curve balls that are just as unexpected as the ones in my daughters' favorite books, but much less imaginative and adventuresome.</strong> My real-life plot twists come in the form of things like lost friendships, bouts of discouragement and flailing hope. Rather than picking locks or leaving clues I'm just feeling vaguely down as I go through a typical day.

So maybe my Survivalist Kit would just hold a bunch of slips of paper, almost like fortunes. Each one would contain something loving and supportive my husband has said to me, a poem or drawing created by my daughters, an encouraging comment left on my blog, a quote by a favorite author, or one of God's great promises. I think such a collection of words would see me through a lot—that and a prayer book and some Tobasco sauce, which never hurts.