Wild Child4thNovember
Our camps appear to be just fun and games, stories and adventures. At moments kids may even *gasp* learn something. In truth, these programs are places to retune ourselves to nearly 1 million years of human history connected to land and family.
As a teen, instead of high school, I wandered through hundreds of miles of wilderness on my own. In my garden and with dirty hands I talked to plants, asking them how they wanted to grow and help feed my family. And I walked in bear prints as they meandered through the salmonberry and vine maple thickets. There's a value trackers hold close to their hearts as they're drawn down an animal's trail…
The more you track something, the more you become it.
If your child follows the paths of deer, cougar or fox for long enough, they may begin to think like them. We exist to undomesticate our family and yours. We may facilitate an easier transition along the way, bridging the gap to take the entire crew with us (including grandma and grandpa). Yet its not about us as instructors, parents or crafting the perfect educational moment. Its about a point on this journey where they might yell at and cry to the trees when nature won't do exactly what they want it to.
After this rite of passage they can make their own choice to listen to the symphony of life around them. They discover how they can participate instead of control. They can choose to flow.
Sometimes it feels like we're on the other side of a looking glass. Sometimes it feels like no one will ever understand. Yet just like the bear, we can't help ourselves. We wake up every morning caring for our families and the land as we play a part in what is wild.
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Winter Break Camps Early registration discount ends December 1, 2009
