Getting back to nature

That’s what my family has been doing during our annual summer camping trip for the last 12 years: really getting to back to nature — no cellphones, TVs or wifi. It started out just wanting the kids to ‘be present’ during our trip — on the road and while camping.  It evolved into something that we all look forward to: A time away that we almost crave.

We camp in a vintage 18ft. ’73 Scamper trailer. It’s what we could afford when we first starting camping. Every year we talk about upgrading, and every year, after camping season, we wonder why we would camp any other way.

Our camper doesn’t offer us the comforts of home. Quite the opposite – it eliminates the comforts of home, resulting in us being able to freely interact with and experience the simplicity of nature. We have come to realize that purposely removing ourselves from the distractions of home and work are exactly what we need on these trips. It clears our heads and renews our outlooks.

And that’s a good enough reason to keep doing it.

While in nature

• the alarm clock becomes the pine cones that a cheeky squirrel drops from the trees onto the roof of the trailer at 6 a.m.
• eating breakfast in front of the tv becomes eating cereal in a lawn chair while watching the finches flit from branch to branch.
• answering emails becomes sitting around the campfire sharing funny stories about when kids were little…interrupted by two owls in the distance communicating with one another.
• texting becomes exploring the riverbank for cool rocks and the jumping in for a swim when it gets hot.
• a good movie becomes discovering a moose and her calf by being in the right place at the right time.

This article was contributed by guest blogger, Lesli Christianson-Kellow.

Lesli enjoys writing about all the things that make a good life – travel, nature, food, family, gardening – and anything else she happens to be curious about.

Lesli can be found on Twitter @LesliCKellow.