I was unpacking one of the myriad boxes marked, very specifically, "BOOKS" and found one I had forgotten and knew I had to share. This book belonged to my father as a child and was a favorite of mine when I was young. I used to look at the pages and think about making a "temporary refrigerator" by submerging a bucket in a stream with my jug of milk in it and building a lean-to with sticks and branches.
Check out that " Daddy's Chair" - fantastic. And the washbasin? That's my kind of camping.
I think this book might be what lead me to join the Girl Scouts. I understand that the troops activities vary greatly depending on the leaders' interests but I must say that I was sorely disappointed in the lack of "Scouting" in my troop. I think the most scout-ish activity was the one time we were allowed to have a turn opening and closing a pocket knife. Sheesh!
I sometimes wonder, in that nature-vs-nurture way, about some of these fascinations in childhood. Was I drawn to this book because of who I was, or am I who I am because this book was tucked into our bookshelves. It makes me curious to see who my children become as they mix their own selves with the community with which we have surrounded them. What might this book inspire in them?
4 comments:
I just came across your blog and wanted to say I love it!
That book by the way is awesome. What a beautiful gift to be able to hand down to your own children. What great future family projects to look forward to as well.
Wow. This is a year or more after your posting, but I just happened onto this blog looking for something else. That book...? That was my FAVORITE book by FAR growing up. My mom found it about 10 years ago (I'm 45 now) and gave it to me. The pages and cover are worn down from all the use it got (from me) when I was a kid. I read it a million times, and practiced anything I could in the back yard. :)
I'm so glad that someone else has known and enjoyed this book. Ours is pretty worn too and inspired lots of projects. I still want to make one of the "food coolers" in a stream to use while camping. If we do it this year I'll report back on our successes.
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