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Camping with my kids: an exercise in risk and failure

Tuesday, October 3, 2017


Camping with my kids, is the thing I do these days, that most effectively wakes me into presence. The break in routine, requires a bit more focus and intentionality. It challenges me to experiment with risk and failure. Ideas I want my kids to be well acquainted with.

Being outdoors is important to me. When we lived in New Zealand, it was easy to tweak our habits to include a hearty dose of nature. In Nashville it is more challenging. Ben's weekend work schedule and our proximity to the city, make it difficult to find things that scratch my itch for outdoor adventure.

Last summer, after a somewhat successful family camping trip in Utah, I decided to learn how to camp on my own with our kids. It felt like an ambitious goal - high risk,  with solid potential for failure and room for some measured success.

Our first trip happened very spontaneously. I think it was a knee-jerk response to feeling sad, lonely or a little bit trapped. I quickly packed up without making a good plan, finding a solid campsite, or checking the weather. We arrived close to dark, the campsite owner was a bit creepy, I forgot pull-ups, it rained and Jonah threw up three times in the middle of the night. In the morning, I lost my temper, cried,  packed up our wet tent and went home. Even still, there were enough redeeming moments to make me want to try again.


Each time I take my kids camping it gets easier. I forget things less frequently, we set up more quickly, I learn better tricks to entertain them in the down time, I figure out what meals work, what routines are helpful. But more importantly we are learning to take risks together, fail and keep moving forward. I need to take some time to unpack why I think that is so valuable... but for some reason, it feels like a really good thing. 

This past weekend we went camping at Tims Ford State Park. It was the first trip I have taken with the kids that felt like more of a success than failure. The weather was perfect. We rode bikes on the trails, I only lost my temper a few times. I read a book in the hammock while the kids built a fort in the woods and we ate lots and lots of smores. I fell asleep under the stars - thankful that we took a risk and made the effort to learn how to camp together. We have failed a lot - but this trip was a success. 









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