Back when I thought I was going to "poof" and get pregnant (of course with a girl), I decided that her middle name would be "Peri," because in Greek it means "mountain dweller."
Although I am no longer stock piling little girl names and my kids already come with what will be the middle names, the name "Peri" had always stuck with me. I love the idea of my children being "mountain dwellers," not just nature lovers or weekend warriors.
I want my children to be comfortable putting a 50 lb pack on and hiking for days in the wilderness. I want them to experience packing a car filled with essentials spur of the moment and driving up into the mountains to find a random spot flat enough to pitch a little tent. I want them to know how to start a fire without a match (but be smart enough to always carry waterproof matches). I want them to know the best way to keep your clothes warm is to put them at the bottom of your mummy bag. I want them to brush their teeth with their fingers (with or without water) and know how to purify water. I want them to roast food on a stick they picked up off the ground and be grateful they have a roll of toilet paper and not just leaves to do their business out in the woods.
I want them to feel the cold morning dew on their fingertips from the inside of the tent. I want them to breath in the crisp, clean air that comes in the early morning hours of the mountains. I want them to taste the smokiness of a campfire dinner and sigh at the warmth of hot chocolate in the morning. I want them to start a marshmallow on fire and watch it burn...and I want them to know those are the gooey, best kind. I want them to hear the world at night and see the stars shining brightly.
I want them to want to get dirty. I want them to love to get dirty. I want them to know how to simultaneously enjoy and preserve nature. I want them to love nature for what it is....nature.
Appa and I were so lucky to be raised in families and an area of the country (beautiful Idaho) that afforded us the chance to enjoy nature early and often. My mama packed each of her five babies into camp sites. At age 13, I trained for months to carry a pack on my back for multiple days as I hiked (not scaled, mind you) one of the many mountains I've had the honor of standing on the top of. I've had the pleasure of sitting in a mountain valley filled with flowers that only a couple people would ever see before they died and taking a shower in a tiny stream waterfall. Appa's family took week long hikes to fish remote lakes, bear spray close at hand and banking on catching their food. Together we've gotten in our car and driven up into the mountains with our tent, some blankets, and a bottle of wine. We've even attend a wedding where the accommodations were tents after a meadow reception. It's normal to us.
My kids? My kids live in a huge metropolitan area. Camping is something you have to schedule...to book an actual camp site. Camp grounds have showers and game rooms and play grounds. The RVs that surround you blare the sounds of the video gaming system the kids would rather play. Appa and I can't always take our kids back West and give them the same exposure we had, and for that, I am very sad. But we are going to try with what we have here, and I am really excited about that.
A tent, a roll of toilet paper, matches, and some food. Hopefully by the time our boys are old to do some more rugged hiking and camping, we will have instilled in them enough of a love for nature that they will enjoy it as much as we will.
Maybe someday if they are blessed with a daughter, they might name her "Peri."
OK, now you have me wanting to go camping!! And btw, you should move back to the West because it's where all the cool people live. Just sayin'. Have a great time this weekend!!
ReplyDeleteKelly, don't I know it. Every time you post pictures of your house on the island and I see Mt. R. in the back I get this little pang of sadness. We lived in WA until I was 8 and many, many, MANY of our camping trips were at Mt. R.
ReplyDeleteoh, i like your way of camping! i certainly don't mind a shower, but i can't stand the RV's and music and video games! blech. i do like to sleep on an air mattress though ;).
ReplyDeleteI want my boys to be able to do all of that too....with their dad. I'll be at home with my electric blanket. I would, however, be thrilled to join them for a day hike. :)
ReplyDeleteYou make camping sound like a lot of fun! I did not grow up camping (aside from some girl scout camping...) but we did promise our kids that we'll try camping in the backyard soon. Baby steps. :)
ReplyDeleteI was raised on backpacking and want to do the same for my kids, but it is so hard to get it together! I admire that you are making it a priority. I think that as long as you stick with it, they'll love it.
ReplyDeleteLove this post. And after being at Yellowstone, I am so jealous that you grew up with all of that! I literally saw things in nature I never knew existed. It was so beautiful. And Andy and I kept talking about how cool it would be for our kids to grow up and work at a national park instead of in the mall!
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