7 Surprises from Tent Camping

After 7 weeks now, I’ve learned some important concepts about life.

Straight, Level, and Plumb are Human Concepts

From what I’ve seen in the woods the last seven weeks, none of these concepts exist in Nature. They are all man-made concepts.

Trees do not grow straight up. To get the most sun, leaves and branches grow toward the sun. Even if they have to grow around something else to reach light.

Now in the mid-west, where the deer and the antelope roam, the ground appears level. I still don’t think you’ll find anything flat, ergo, level.

From making breakfast with a TV-tray table, buckets as support tables, etc. few things won’t fall over in the wild.

Life’s Imperfections are its Perfections

Can you imagine how boring life would be if everything was perfect? A hilltop that’s a perfect upside down V. The way branches grow on trees. The differences in the shoreline of a lake when it goes from beach to huge rocks.

Which is more interesting? Sunset with zero clouds in the sky, or sunset with a swath of clouds that as the sun’s angle alters, so does their color and texture? We might say the latter makes for a perfect…