Spirit Caught.
It's official- the Catching the Spirit summer is now over. Ten years complete- and this one was the best yet (but that's what they say every year).
For me it definitely was the best, considering it was my first. But ohh, what a ride it's been. So many amazing memories, so many new friends, so much learned, so much discovered. I can't think of any other way I'd rather spend my summer than with amazing youth, in the most beautiful forests of the world AND learning about our environment and how to conserve it.
It has been wonderful to see the youth get inspired to start riding their bikes to school, to stop drinking bottled water and to turn off their lights and TV's when not being used. We learned how to go "no-trace" camping, we talked about clear-cutting, about pine beetles, invasive species and not wasting water. It's so rewarding to see the campers going home every weekend being excited about their decisions and how they will affect their future.
Our main goal for this summer was to get the youth connected with nature. Most of these kids are induced in the stress and commotion of city life, and rarely get a chance to spend time with nature. At camp we spend a lot of time outside, and try to build relationships between the youth and their environment. I think it really showed at the end of our very last camp when we did an activity where we all gathered around a tree. One girl gave the hemlock a name; Hemmy. Holding hands, we went around in a circle saying nice things about the tree-
"Hemmy, you're so tall and strong."
"Hemmy, you give me clean air to breathe."
"Hemmy, your give me shade in the summer's heat."
"Hemmy, you make me feel safe."
After all the compliments to Hemmy, we gave it a great big group hug to thank it for everything it gives us. After, we asked the youth how they felt; some of their responses were "I've never felt so in-touch with nature before, it was a cool feeling!" And that is what Catching the Spirit is really all about- building relationships with nature, so that we can make good decisions, and do everything we can to conserve our environment.
Great summer CtS- I feel blessed to have been a part of it this summer. Hopefully I'll be back next year!
For me it definitely was the best, considering it was my first. But ohh, what a ride it's been. So many amazing memories, so many new friends, so much learned, so much discovered. I can't think of any other way I'd rather spend my summer than with amazing youth, in the most beautiful forests of the world AND learning about our environment and how to conserve it.
It has been wonderful to see the youth get inspired to start riding their bikes to school, to stop drinking bottled water and to turn off their lights and TV's when not being used. We learned how to go "no-trace" camping, we talked about clear-cutting, about pine beetles, invasive species and not wasting water. It's so rewarding to see the campers going home every weekend being excited about their decisions and how they will affect their future.
Our main goal for this summer was to get the youth connected with nature. Most of these kids are induced in the stress and commotion of city life, and rarely get a chance to spend time with nature. At camp we spend a lot of time outside, and try to build relationships between the youth and their environment. I think it really showed at the end of our very last camp when we did an activity where we all gathered around a tree. One girl gave the hemlock a name; Hemmy. Holding hands, we went around in a circle saying nice things about the tree-
"Hemmy, you're so tall and strong."
"Hemmy, you give me clean air to breathe."
"Hemmy, your give me shade in the summer's heat."
"Hemmy, you make me feel safe."
After all the compliments to Hemmy, we gave it a great big group hug to thank it for everything it gives us. After, we asked the youth how they felt; some of their responses were "I've never felt so in-touch with nature before, it was a cool feeling!" And that is what Catching the Spirit is really all about- building relationships with nature, so that we can make good decisions, and do everything we can to conserve our environment.
Great summer CtS- I feel blessed to have been a part of it this summer. Hopefully I'll be back next year!
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