Why do outdoor activities?

From the perspective of one of our amazing youth, Ginga:

Monday, April 29, 2013

Why do we go to Camp

        This is part of a blog post that my AMAZING boss, the camp director at Camp Loll posted a few years ago about why we go to camp, I'll touch on a few of the things he said that stood out to me:

"One Saturday morning I sat at my desk in the lonely quiet time before the breakfast bell. A big, strong man walked into the camp office. “Who was responsible for retiring that flag last night?” he demanded. I figured someone was in trouble. I said, “I guess that would be me.” “I just wanted to thank you,” he said. He went on to tell me he was a Captain in the Marines. I told him that it would mean a lot to the staff to hear what he had to say. At breakfast he stood to speak to us. He explained that that past year he had lead his men up the Valley of the Euphrates during the liberation of Bagdad. His sergeant had been killed, and several of his men wounded, a terrible cost.They did this to keep America free, to ensure that we could enjoy the wonders of Yellowstone. He then told another story. In 1986, he swam a mile in Lake of the Woods. He told us how difficult it was to be a Marine in training, to be a Marine. “And yet,” he said, “through all those trials I kept reminding myself, that as hard as this is, it isn't as hard as swimming a mile in Lake of the Woods.

... 

 The most important things to be gained at a Council Scout Camp are the values of Scouting. Our Council Camps will fill the lives of scouts and leaders with God and Country, service to others, and duty to self. Council Camps provide real experiences that teach the scouts as they live the adventure. No watching fantasy lives in movies or on TV, no computer generated escapade. Camp is the real thing. There are no false highs from drugs or fake friends in hate driven gangs. We know the battle you are fighting for their futures; we want to give you a week long weapon to defend them for the rest of their lives.

They will meet God as they live in the wilderness that is His art, and learn to love and protect it, to be the stewards of the earth He has told them to be. They will share with their friends the truth of beauty, where a flower or the star-filled sky equally proclaim God’s glory, where service and love are revealed in the person of a Scoutmaster, a staff friend, a SPL, or a scout; where brotherhood speaks of the God in man.

They will feel the joy of freedom that is America as they live, work, and play in wild lands that belong to them. They are richer than kings, because they are American Citizens. All day, every day, they will lead and follow and share. They will thrill with joy as they pledge allegiance to the flag that stands for freedom in ceremonies where their heroes model respect for their country. They will shed tears of gratitude as a ragged old flag is committed to the sacred fire, symbolic of the respect of a grateful nation.

They will be there for each other; serve each other as they gather firewood, cook meals, wash dishes, dispose of garbage, clean KYBOs and scrub the showers. They will participate in meaningful service projects that will beautify their National Forests and their Camps, service that will teach them to care. They will learn to lead as Patrol or Senior Patrol Leaders, and they will learn to follow their peers as well as their adult leaders and camp staff councilors. They will come to know that they can trust leaders who are their friends and learn to be worthy of the trust of those they love.

They will face and overcome physical challenges they would never dare were not you and the camp staff there. They will swim in mountain lakes, climb to mountain tops, and earn the pleasure that comes from pain."

--Delose Conner--

This was just so touching to me, when he talked about meeting God I even let a few tears out. I hope that this might answer some of your questions about why I would leave the comforts of home for a summer.
It can also apply to our outdoor activities, there's a reason that God gave us wilderness and I hope that we can all find that out for ourselves.

Here's the link to his original post back in 2010: http://attheagora.blogspot.com/2011/10/why-go-to-camp-final-cut.html

 Thanks, and have a great summer!

The power of Game night and Outdoor activities

I came across this talk while listening to the radio in my car.  It was a broadcast from BYU on July 17, given by Patti Freeman and titled "Intentional recreation and Things that Matter Most."

Here is a link where, for now, you can either listen to or watch it. (I believe the transcript will be up later.)  I only came in towards the end, but it was incredible...all about the many benefits we get with intentionally recreating as a family (or as mentors with our youth!). 

Intentional recreation and Things that Matter Most

When the transcripts are up, I will try and put in my favorite sections for those who don't have the time to listen to, watch, or read the whole thing.
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Here is the link to the talk I mentioned today.

http://www2.byui.edu/Presentations/Transcripts/Devotionals/2011_08_16_Wood.htm

Angie

Outdoor adventure vision and thoughts

I went to a talk by Dan Ralphs a few years ago at the TJEd forum (2010, I believe it was) called "Unveiling Genius: Mentoring in the Scholar Phase," where he described the power of being out of doors in the life and education of a young man.

Coming away from that, I envisioned for the Outdoor activities a true outdoor adventure, particularly the end of the year hike.  There is something inspiring and symbolic in a "quest" or "adventure".  Whether it is physical in a backpacking experience (which I believe minimizes distractions as they are forced to carry the bare minimum for survival--a humbling and equalizing experience) or in the form of a series of activities that work towards an end, it carries with it a sense of accomplishment at the end that is very satisfying.

However, I was concerned about the availability of this adventure to youth with different physical needs.  I would hate to think that one of the youth would never be able to be a participant due to physical restrictions or limitations.  However, as one of the youth put it who didn't want it to be made so simple and easy that there was no challenge in it at all: "It's not that I want it to be something that pushes me at my level exclusively...I just don't want it to be something so easy that it is not challenging for any but a few."  I think of the journeyman and master level classes that we have, and we can see the different levels of education--of course, this difference would have to be recognized in the outdoor/physical challenge arena as well.

 As I pondered how we could make this "outdoor adventure" challenging, yet open (again, my idealism is kicking in), I couldn't help by reflect on my own experiences camping with my husband, Quinn.

As Quinn goes hiking with us as a family, he normally always ends up having a physically challenging experience as he reaches out to serve and help his family along, taking on far more than what many would consider "his share."  But even as I type that, with his physical skill and prowess, perhaps his physical stewardship in such activities is actually much greater, and he is merely stepping into naturally, being the amazing man that he is :).

The first year Vanguard hike, I was pregnant, and therefore unable to carry all of my belongings on my own back.  Quinn took mine on for me, and I carried what I was able in a daypack (although I did bring "Les Mis" which brought a raised eyebrow from my pack-carrying husband ;)...).  I was pushed, inspired and satisfied, despite my different load.  What if people approached those who felt that they couldn't come and paired them up (just in a "share the load" sense) with people that could handle a little more of a challenge, who could help shoulder some of their burden?  Each youth could look at what they could carry, and we could ask for volunteer "manly men" from our youth (I am sure we would get some takers!) to help them pack it in.  It would be a physical challenge still for those with less physical stamina--they would be reaching within themselves to rise up--and those with more "physical stewardship" (like my husband Quinn :)...) can be challenged more.

If  you approach it in the right light with the youth that are planning the event, I think they would rise up to it;  say something like  "we would like all who would like to participate be able to come", point out the challenges they will face at their own level, and ask what they thought of distributing the load among the others,...like when the pioneers would help redistribute fellow pioneer's loads when they needed to, and helped shoulder it.

Then, you could privately approach those who were concerned with the physical demands of it, bring up the suggestion, and give it in the context: "we all just do what we can, and we want them to be with us."

If you have a group like ours was, where the respect for differences is universal and all are accepted for where they are at, it is not a problem of self-esteem or worry about peer impressions for those who are not physically quite "up to it" on their own.

Thoughts on age limitations, particularly on the Outdoor activity

When I have taught a class that I was striving for impact (spiritual, mental, etc.) for knights of freedom, the longest (with activities) that I can generally get that--using all my Mary-ness to recognize different levels of engagement and personalities to try and manage the class as a whole to allow the Spirit to teach them without them becoming a distraction to each other--is about an hour--and that is more the exception than the rule, based a great deal on who is there, how they are feeling, and what kind of day they are having (and other mentors seem to think I work magic getting it that long--it can be a challenge, albeit a worthy one :)...).  And that is mixing in activities, personal feedback, attention using activities (object lessons) etc, and (it is normally in a book discussion), it has to kind of ebb and flow in it's depth.

In Vanguard, I could get about an hour of intellectual/spiritual engagement (for all the ages) and then start using the other more hands on/ "moment to stretch" tools, and then I could come back to more depth.  The ebbs and flows would be longer.

Adult settings, if I have the right group, we can go solid for hours (like at TJEd trainings).  We can probe, in depth, a spiritual concept, for at least a good hour, although, I think our Vanguard youth group is almost as attentive as my adult Sunday School class was :).

I also tried to look at it from the LDS church's perspective, and why they separate into classes, based upon ages.  Even in the smallest branch, the nursery is separated from the sunbeams, in recognition of different levels of attention span and ability to teach in depth.  Similar to the youth separated from the primary...even if it is a youth group of one!  Why is that?  Could it be related to the emotional separation and distinction that an individual begins to feel as they transition to "youth-hood"?  How before they were more content to accept a parent's world-view, whereas during that transition they begin to see themselves for their individuality and try to figure out where they stand?  It is a different viewpoint on life, from my understanding and in my experience in discussion the same issue with different ages.

On the other hand, there is much to be learned as a family, as King Benjamin (from the Book of Mormon) invited all to attend his final conference, as we do for our LDS General Conference, knowing that our little ones benefit from the Spirit---and all are invited at the sacrament table...vision, vision, vision! :)

It made me also think about why we don't have Vanguard open to all ages?  What are those reasons that we have?  Attention span, depth...?  Because, as I have tried to capture the vision in writing, it has made me really think...what is it that I am envisioning when I have limited Vanguard (and the outdoor adventure) to 12 and older?

I think what I am envisioning for the Outdoor Adventure is Vanguard, ...for three days in a powerhouse of nature, free from distraction, and transformational in nature.  The depth of really exploring what the youth have learned, how they have changed, where they are at now spiritually, emotionally, mentally, can be powerful questions as they reflect back on those moments in the year when they experienced the joy of deep, spiritual thinking and understand it is somewhere they can be.  And then challenging them to something higher!  (Yes, I'm an idealist :)!)  I have been with youth and had these type of experiences, where we can make connections, build upon lesson after lesson, and arrive at a higher place at the end.

This is similar to the differences I see in the level of engagement that are possible with people on the apprentice level, journeyman level, and master level.  I envision the master level class as a a powerhouse of connections as they use their ability to really look at questions, seek for truth, apply different lenses, and apply those truths in a world changing way as they get to that third level of intelligence you mentioned from Elder Bednar's book,  creating over-seas organizations, organizing humanitarian missions, petitioning the local and national government with concerns, submitting articles to political leaders and newspapers as they see the issues they have learned about and see how they need to be changed in society.  (Read "Do Hard Things"!)  To have that kind of discussion with a 12 year old generally would be boring to them, or at least incomprehensible, as our Eureka discussions were to our younger participants.  They thought the discussions were cool, but felt like  outsiders, looking in.  I could tell they weren't really understanding it.

I know it all depends upon vision of the particular group--their goal with each activity and class--, and that something can be lost in the beauty of diversity if we make it too limiting.  These are just some thoughts I have had that have led me, personally, to make some of those hard decisions in maintaining a certain standard of admission to preserve that vision.

Really, because I am more an exception kind of girl (and feel that the spirit of the law should always prevail over the letter of it), I feel that there are always exceptions that should be allowed when the principle is honored and the Spirit dictates.  Hence, the caveat in my proposed bylaws (subject to the discretion of the mentors, or something like that) for such cases.