This was my bible when I was abut 12-13 years old. I took it very seriously. At the time, I was living smack dab between the Atlantic ocean and the Smoky mountains. I had a highly detailed map of the whole state. I planned a route to make it into the mountains and live with the land, just like Sam did. There weren’t dreams of having a falcon, like Frightful, but dreams of being friends with the animals, plants, the mountains. When my mother found out about my plans to run off, she took that old tattered book away from me. I don’t know if she still has it or not.
When I think about it now, of course I was fucking stupid! I mean, a 13 year old girl WALKING 200+ miles to the middle of nowhere? Not safe in the slightest!
Even though I didn't know it at the time, this book definitely set me on a path.
I still dream about it. Perhaps not at that level exactly, but complete self-sufficiency. Making, growing, wild-harvesting my own foods. Log burning stove. My own soap. Spinning my own fibers ... and other things. Making that my life.
Totally! And the movie too! I used to live in the wilderness when my father was stationed up north. My parents thought it was okay for a 10 year old to wander into the mountainous woods for 4-6 hours with bears, moose, mountain lions, etc. Sometimes the kids would go in groups... with a shotgun to hunt dinner.
ReplyDeleteMy parents' version of worrying: "Take a lunch and make lots of noise so the wild animals leave you alone". I suppose the hiking was safer than me and my sister snowmobiling with one of us riding a rubber inner tube tied to the back on a frozen river...
Now that you're an adult you could totally take off for a few days, lol.
Slainte!
Sarah
When it gets a bit warmer I'm totally hitting the near by forest reserve (Mt. Hood)! Its almost at my door step (about an hour bus ride) so I have no excuses to get out there and romp around :D
ReplyDeleteSounds like we had a similar childhood. For a time, my dad trained Army Rangers in the middle of nowhere Florida swamps and both my parents were like, "Oh poisonous snakes, bears and gadors? HAVE FUN!" Thankfully I never became anyone's lunch! Lol.