not good for us to be alone.
I disagree that self-reliance has anything to do with being alone at all. It's about moving towards being able to provide a plethora of things required for life and even enjoyment without waiting for someone else to do it.
The rest of what you say makes perfect sense, the time thing you mention and the slant towards greater self-reliance through a garden that produces food; I think that's becoming more of an issue in a time when so many don't have the skills around doing it or processing the foods that come out of it for future use. (Another thing that is self-reliance focused.)
I'm a prepper so can talk about this all day however this post was more about my financial readiness (and decisions around that) so my partner and I don't need to rely on some immigrant who doesn't speak English working in a nursing home to look after us, so that we can keep rockin' it in the way we do now and enjoy the life we have now even after we exit the workforce. It's a pretty good life so I don't see the point in letting it go for something less.
Being a prepper is the rational choice in the current climate.
For the alone part I was thinking of my time as a soldier, an Infantryman.
Everyone breaks. Pressure and exhaustion can do that to everyone. It's good to have a team or family to pull you along when you need it.
We think the same thoughts about - the nursing home, we moved back to the family homestead last year, my mother is getting older and I'm glad we are here because she never wants to be taken care of by strangers. Nor do we.
I've been giving a lot of thought to my own health and tuning my diet and exercise so I can be robust until late in life - the idea of becoming frail seems unacceptable.
A good unit, good people, with the same objectives, determination and mindset is important whether that's in the field or back home and I'm fortunate to have exactly that.
People get old, it's crazy how/why people don't see that and plan more effectively for it but the reality is so many do not; running and gunning at full tilt doesn't last forever, not in its original format or pace, but with good planning one can keep operating at a good level, meaning have a good life. Health is one aspect for sure, but financial health factors in too, as does being (more) self-reliant...like the end of my posts always say, design and create your ideal life, don't live it be default. Really important stuff.
I looked after both my parents until their ultimate demise, one was cancer (she had a horrible death) and the other dementia/cancer - both situations were tremendously challenging. That, and the death I've seen elsewhere, helps me live better in the present but also actively plan ahead as I want a good life all round, not just in the present.
Glad to hear you're thinking about it and planning...that means you're well ahead of so many people and will have a good chance to rock it into your later years. For the record, I'm still running and gunning, literally with guns, and in most aspects of life from relationship, career, financial, emotional, spiritual, enjoyment/fullfillmemt, social and in other ways...I think being able to truthfully make statements like that comes from a lot of effort, hard work, planning and execution and I'm happy I've taken the responsibility for those actions...and it's great to read you're doing the same.