Open Letter to a Troll

Friends and readers, please forgive me as I take a moment to respond to a person who seems to have singled me out as his target by posting insults on other websites that are kind enough to republish my work.  I refuse to engage in discourse with him on someone else’s website.  But the benefit of having my own site is that I can take a moment from my day, post a one-time response here, and answer any questions he has attempted to raise about my credibility and my intentions.  For those dear people who read the hateful messages posted and responded with negative ratings and kind words, thank you from the bottom of my heart for coming to my defense.  It was like a hug from afar.

Dear Mr. Troll:

First, let me congratulate you.  You have my attention through your numerous attempts to insult and discredit me.  If that was your goal, then job well done.

I will respond one time, and one time only, to a few of the stones you’ve cast.  Let me assure you, that despite what spleen you choose to vent in the future, that as far as I am concerned, my reply has been made.  I will not engage in some kind of internet ad hominem battle with you.  Further, in this missive, I won’t respond to your personal insults about my appearance, my marital status or my intelligence.  Those are simply your opinion, and therefore not open to discussion, persuasion or debate.

My question for you, Mr. Troll, and this is truly rhetorical, is, “What are you doing to help?  How are you promoting preparedness, health and awareness?”  I could be wrong, unbeknownst to me you may have your own flourishing website, teach outdoor survival to inner city youth, and run a militia in your spare time, but I see nothing constructive in your posts – I only see criticism and insults.

Mr. Troll, it bothers you immensely that I reside in Canada.  I have personal reasons for doing so, and they are not something I generally discuss, but here goes. I used to be married to a Canadian man.  We had two lovely children together.  Although things did not work out between us, I chose to remain in this lovely country that I currently call home.  Did I want to come home to my beloved America?  Yes, with all my heart.  But, if you are a parent, you will understand that we often push back our own desires for the well-being of our children.  I felt that, despite the fact that I was no longer married to their father, that they still deserved to have him as a part of their lives, and by a part, I mean more than a couple of times a year after a long plane flight.  When their father passed away, an early shocking death, I decided to remain for two more years so my oldest could finish her last year of high school and get her feet on the ground in her first year away from home.  At some point in the very near future, I pray to be able to return to the land of my birth.  Meanwhile, I am happy here in my adopted home with the wonderful Canadians who have welcomed me.

Next, Mr. Troll, you seem to find it arrogant that I comment on the political and economic situation of the United States.  Let me remind you (and refer you to the above paragraph) that I am an American, so these things concern me greatly.  I can’t be there right now to protest in person the encroaching police state, but I can use my gift as a writer to draw attention to it.  My goal with what I write is never to insult the land of my birth – it is to awaken people to what is going on, to inspire them to be self-sufficient, and to contribute my own little effort to the resistance against the destruction of the Constitution.  Each small effort, each random act of resistance, is one volley fired against those who would enslave us. Many small voices can make a loud noise.

Finally, Mr. Troll, you seem to take great glee in disparaging my efforts at living in a remote Northern area.  You are absolutely right.  I have made many rookie mistakes.  Heating with wood has been a learning experience with quite a few setbacks.  It’s bitterly cold and I’ve been trying to acclimate and to make my house warmer.  I’ve had frozen pipes, power outages, and wet icy wood.  We have been snowbound for a week at a time, several times.  I had to climb out a window one morning to remove the 3 feet of snow that blew against the door.  I have made some catastrophic recipes, failed in an attempt to make biscuits atop the woodstove, and some of my rice got damp and had to be discarded.  If I was trying to be a know-it-all, as you loudly claim, I wouldn’t share these experiences.  I write about these things honestly, despite some very clear failures.  I am sharing my learning curve in the hopes that someone might one day remember my mistakes and circumvent making those mistakes themselves.  If that causes you to regard me as pathetic, then that is your problem, not mine.  Pathetic, in my opinion, would be trying to set myself up as an expert by hiding the failures.  I’m fortunate to have the opportunity to make these errors now, while back up is as close as the nearest grocery store or the electric space heater.  I’ve been blessed to have this opportunity to learn what I need to learn and by sharing, I give my thanks.

Well, Mr. Troll, in closing, you succeeded in hurting my feelings with your personal attacks, so if that was your goal, I must heartily congratulate you.  While I understand the basic psychology of why you do what you do, I’ll never be able to truly grasp those who enjoy deliberately trying to cause emotional pain and humiliation to others.  Maybe it sounds weak to admit that, but I’m a human being, and words matter – I’d be lying if I denied this or said I didn’t care.  You may chalk that up as a small  victory.  However, my victory is that I’ll pick myself up, dust myself off, and continue trying to raise awareness of the encroaching economic and social disasters, I will look for my little dream farm, and I will learn (and share) lessons of survival and preparedness here in the stunning beauty of the North Woods.  I will raise intelligent, curious children, provide information about health and wellness and publicly air my mistakes so that others might learn from them.  You, clearly, shall remain under your bridge, slinging mud at those who do their best to travel the high road above you.

Sincerely,

Daisy Luther

American citizen, Canadian resident