A couple weeks ago, I saw the movie "Into the Wild." It reminded me of all the reasons why I like the wilderness so much. For those of you who don't know, I spend most of my summer in Northern Minnesota/Canada canoing and having fun in the middle of the wilderness at a camp. For me, the wilderness is an escape. It's where I can go to be "free" in a really philosophical sense, and that's why I like the film "Into the Wild" so much. The film's protagonist leaves civilization to go into the wild in Alaska, kind of like how I leave civilization for camp every summer (except I don't die).
Camp and the wilderness in general has always been a huge part of my life. For vacations, my parents would take me and my brother to places like Olympic National Park and the Rocky Mountains instead of Disneyland and all the places we actually wanted to go to. Now, I realize how much I love the wilderness. That's why IMSA can be so difficult. Going to school in a wanna-be 70s bomb shelter isn't exactly my idea of being in touch with nature. So, I have to figure out ways to connect my life at school with camp and the wilderness. I'm starting to find a way to do this. At camp, there is a code called the Law of the Woods. I have found that I can incorporate this into my daily life, and in the process can feel more peaceful and connected to the wilderness.
Of the 12 Laws of the Woods, the last one is the one I find the most important for my life at IMSA. It says "Seek the joy of being alive." Now, seeking the joy of being alive is kind of hard to do when I have Victory summatives, MCB tests, and Student Council elections to worry about. But then I have to stop, think, and realize the little things that make me happy and the fact that being at IMSA makes me appreciate the wilderness even more.
I'm sure that some of my future posts will be devoted to camp stories, but if anyone has questions about my camp/ wilderness stuff, I love to talk about those things as many of you know :).
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3 comments:
haha, the law of the woods sounds harsh. but i too like the good old outdoors.
we should plan an imsa camping trip some time when this fickle weather (as ceecee puts it) decides it truly is time for spring.
I agree completely!
But where would we go?
And the Law of the Woods isn't harsh, it just sounds intimidating :). It's basically about being a good person. I'll see if I can bring a copy to school. We could adapt it for Student Council : The Law of StudCo. Now THAT would be intimidating. hahaha.
Even though I am a huge wimp (as in, bugs and small animals freak me out), I admit that I really miss being outdoors sometimes. Over break, in San Antonio, we were outside pretty much all the time. Granted, San Antonio is no wilderness, but it was nice just to be out in the air again.
Oh. And if we ever had a camping trip, I would totally go. I mean, yeah, I'm weak, but I can rough it. Two summers ago I slept in a cave for a week. It was hardcore, haha...
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