The moments in between

This October, a group of Explorer teens gathered around a campfire at YMCA Camp Campbell Gard after a hike, sipping foraged sassafras tea. Madison Lindsay of Play Wild, a certified forest therapy guide leading a forest mindfulness experience that day, asked them a simple question: 

What did you notice?

As we head into end-of-year giving, it’s natural to think about the big things. Keeping every program 100 percent free means covering $115,000 in program fees such as entrance costs, equipment rentals and expert instruction; $65,000 in yellow bus rentals and other transportation; and $28,000 in meals for our teens. Those numbers matter. But lately I keep coming back to the moments in between: the quiet after a hike; the laughter after a stumble; the conversation that happens while no one is rushing anywhere. That’s when a new experience has room to sink in; when teens begin to metabolize what they’ve just done and carry it with them. Small, and mighty.

Around that campfire, one teen shared, “School is really loud and stressful. It is really nice to be calm and quiet in nature.” Another said, “When you brought my attention to my heartbeat, I noticed I was able to calm my heart and breathing.” One realized, “I am noticing I really need to go outside more!” and another wanted to know, “Where can I buy this [sassafras] plant to grow, I want to make this tea!” One young man, there with his school advisor, shared with the group for the first time, and his advisor said what a big step that was. Another school advisor took note and asked her students whether they’d want to bring this practice into school. These are tools teens can come back to every time they step outside.

Ask teens why they come out on Saturdays with our Explorer program, and year after year the top answer is “friends.” “It sounded really fun and I knew my friends were coming!” one eighth grader wrote. What they remember is often the in-between: “Me and my friends floating and talking about our lives.” “I will remember me always falling on the ski slope and just laughing with my friends.” On a recent wilderness trip in Canada, one teen started a 1,000-piece puzzle alone. By the last day, the whole group had joined in and finished it. Another teen left that trip feeling “more confident telling risky things about myself.”

Teens also notice the adults who believe in them. Asked what they like most about Adventure Crew, a tenth grader wrote, “The leaders because they are confident in every student.” Another admitted, “I was afraid they would judge since I’m not that outdoorsy, but they were so kind.” At Camp Campbell Gard, one student pulled Madison aside to ask how she found her way into her career. A short conversation, and a new path comes into view.

None of these moments shows up as a line item in our budget. But every one of them depends on the bus that got teens there, the gear that fit and kept them safe, and the meal that fueled them. Please keep an eye out for our end of year appeal launching just before Thanksgiving. When you give, you make room for the moments in between.

With gratitude,
Libby