THE COUNTRY BOY
Until the fourth grade, my husband grew up in rural
Montana. When he was a kid, he and his
buddies would walk through town with their bb guns slung over their shoulders
to head to the last trash can before the Canadian border. There they would pick up large trash bags full
of beer cans that couldn’t go over the border; bring them back to their hang
out; shake ‘em up and shoot them to watch them explode. He would spend entire days exploring caves or
abandoned race tracks while his parents had only a vague idea of where he was. He brought this small town mentality with him
when he moved to California and one time after a bicycle accident,
he even hitched a ride with a total stranger in order to get back home. I am told these sort of things were safe back
then…
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| In the tent! |
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| Our youngest camper, Hailey, with guard dog, Anna Belle. :) |
I, on the other hand, was born and raised in California, in
the Bay Area. An area that was booming with growth and new
population from who knows where. My
parents did their best to engineer our safety. My exploring was limited to our back yard and our next door neighbor’s house where their parents
(the amazing ‘Barnicks as we called them) allowed us to completely take over
their garage to make a Barbie town with houses; hair salons and
bakeries. Living in a cul-d-sac, we rode bikes with the plan of never meeting traffic or unexpected company. At school I was taught to
think “RED LIGHT!” if a stranger looked at me too long or spoke to me. And one day I literally ran all the way home
from school when someone in a car asked me for the time, shouting over my shoulder, “I
think it’s sometime after 3:20!!!” I know, it seems a little extreme, but I am here, aren't I?
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| We visited the camp before bedtime and played a game. |
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| Silly heads. |
So what happens when two people from completely different backgrounds marry; become Believers and have kids? The town girl hears that camping out in the winter is a great idea. It's part of what forms a healthy childhood! Winter registers as a slight concern, but it is California. The conditions are not too severe. Mostly the "outside" part raises the red flag. Coyotes, stray dogs.. strangers! The country boy deflects these arguments eloquently with a response of, "Nah."
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| They had a blast, even if it was 40 degrees and they had to cuddle close. :) |
So here we are, almost twenty-three years into marriage with a group of BB gun shooting, outdoor camping,
doll playing, tea party loving girls who seem to think "GREEN LIGHT-- LET'S HAND THIS PERSON A TRACT!” when they meet a stranger because,
let’s be honest, mom or dad are always right there. :)
Happy Camping friends!
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