By Jen Slayden
My kids are wild! This fact doesn’t surprise me, since I was the last of seven wild children growing up. Some might say it is a genetic flaw. I say it is a blessing, and as a mom I do whatever I can to promote it, especially in my tweens!
I am a firm believer that if you are going to live in the state of Montana that training starts immediately upon birth. So when the tweens were infants, they were introduced immediately to the great outdoors. Sometimes it would take an hour to bundle up appropriately, but it was always worth it, because as I saw them take in nature for the first time it renewed my spirit as well. Our children have seen amazing weather patterns like grapple, sleet, snow, wind, rain, smoke season, scorching temperatures and sunshine…..sometimes in a twenty-four hour period!
Those early years were their preparation for adventures to come. The wild side just kept growing along with the kids. The classroom was their outdoors, and their main subjects were the four elements of nature which were learned through hiking, camping, fishing, rafting, and all things outdoors in every season.
Smith River Trip 2008
Two summers ago we drew a lottery ticket to float the Smith River. The trip was one of the most amazing and adventuresome family trips we have taken. My husband Mark literally fought a bear (but that is a story in itself), it snowed the night before we launched, and the rivers was completely flooded out, leaving the fishing poor but the conversation and connection with each other and nature quite rich.
With all that happened, you would think a few of those memorable adventures would be what my tweens would remember. But nope! During dinner the other night, in the typical fashion of inappropriate dinner stories of course, the memories flooded back. The winning memory? It was the call of nature. It was the outs. The outs are the pottys in the designated campgrounds on the Smith. Lacking the house, they are technically not outhouses.
The red cinch chord marks the out is occupied.
Embracing this wild side proved a formidable task for my tween daughter, who preferred to drop her drawers behind doors. Unfortunately it had to be learning experience for me too, who used to enjoy backpacking and all that goes with it. Since becoming a mom, it seems that I had lost touch a bit with my free spirit. You see, these outs are quite exposed. Some are up high on the side of the mountain, overlooking the river. Some are along long grassy, paths in which you feel as if a thousand animals are watching you, and sometimes they are. At one site there is a mossy trail that leads behind a group of boulders deep in the thick trees.
I couldn’t quite get the tune “GET DOWN ON IT” by Kool and the Gang out of my head each time Grace and I went and used the bathroom. Maybe it’s because I used to say that when my kids were toddlers they did “potty dance” when they had to go. “How you gonna do it if you really don’t want to dance”…….Grace and I weren’t sure if we really wanted to dance or not!
THRONE out in nature………..
Luckily, we found that adventure awaited in imagining what the next out would look like, where it would be located, and whether it was clean or not. It made for some interesting conversations. And like it or not, when you are in the wilderness for five days conversations that you would never catch yourself in on an ordinary gathering are quite commonplace. Your normal “good morning” is replaced with: “Have you been at the out yet this morning?”
That trip brought out the call of the wild in my tweens. We have since rafted overnight and slept under the stars, with the kids sandwiched in the middle and the dog on the end. We hope to continue bringing out the wild side in our tweens and grounding them more and more!
Currently at home, Riley is cutting a hiking trail up behind our house. As he heads farther up the path with his shovel carving out the next switchback I am glowing with gratitude. He’s getting paid a little for it, which is helping develop a strong work ethic in his character. We have done well as teachers in the School of the Wild, just as my parents did with us seven wild children.
I do hope my tweens see the world someday, experience the joys of travel, and culture beyond what we can offer here in our state. However, when it comes down to it…I’m a mom. I want my children to do it all, but my heart goes back to the carving of the trail. I want them to remember the out. I hope that when they have learned what they need and want past the borders of our beautiful state they will long for their wild side, they will pick the shovel, carve a trail back home and stay forever.
Next Time on The Tween Chronicles: The Road Less Traveled
Jen Slayden is a long time Missoulian who thrives in the chaos of being a mother of three while also being a Certified Life Coach, musician and educator. She enjoys writing about all of life’s little lessons on her blog, which you can find at www.bigskylifecoach.com .
Similar Posts:
- The tween chronicles: When did this happen and what now?
- TWEEN CHRONICLES: MAMA’S MIDDLE SCHOOL BACKPACK
- Tween Chronicles: Facing the Music
- Tween Chronicles: DOGMA
- Wild Turkey Days
Love what you read? Share it!
Email This Post
[...] http://www.mamalode.com/2010/04/tween-chronicles-school-of-the-wild/ Explore posts in the same categories: Life Coach Tips [...]
Ahhh Jen, what a great story! You are a blessing in this world!
Beth
What a great trip! And I love the shot of the throne out in nature! I also like your last sentence which ties everything together.
Great post Jen!
Love the “outs”! May all Montana children experience the School of the Wild. Thanks for this story Jen, love the pictures too.
Can’t wait to hear the bear story!
I have a few fond memories of ‘outs’ in the backcountry, myself. Funny how strong those ‘shy’ or ‘embarrassed’ memories are.
I recently carved my trail home after being gone for many years. I am quite moved to imagine that it matters as much to those I love as it does to me. Thank you for this.
Another great story with lessons for life. I know how special Smith river trips are for your family. what wonderful memories you are making for your children. Love you….. vonnie
ooh I can’t wait to have big adventure with my girls. My best childhood memories are family vacations in nature…epic road trips, Salmon River floats, camping. The world is much different now than when I was a kid and I feel like kids aren’t out as much as they were…glad to hear of your inspiring adventures getting out and how they are shaping your kids.
LOVE the image, carving the trail back home. With my wild boys in Philly and Chicago, I long for the day they are able to work on their trails back home — or at least west of the Mississippi!