 |
 |
|
|
|
September, 2006
The Endless Search - Lessons from oatmeal.
By Adam Butterfield
Maturity is a simple thing that we spend our entire life in pursuit of. In truth, do we ever reach it maturity or do we just continue the search? Each experience helps us to grow, and each growth is one of many pieces on the road to maturity. Some experiences help us grow more than others. Trips away from home, emergencies, and life-changing events all bring out our inner wisdom and growth.
Four years ago my journey surged ahead on the current of life. I was a 13-year-old kid too scared to try anything new. I always loved rock climbing but when I found out my parents signed me up for a 4-week long sleep away rock climbing camp in Maine, I was hesitant. Through out my first weeks at the Acadia Mountain Guides Rock Climbing summer camp I faced many difficulties. I was a finicky eater and very fastidious about my food. The first day of camp I came face to face with one of my worst fears. As a group we voted on a rule that we had to at least try everything once. That meant I had to try some pretty far out foods that I had never eaten before: baked beans, chili, rice and beans, burritos - basically things that I thought would make a Billy goat puke. Truthfully, I loved to eat but had a pretty narrow diet. So I tried to skip meals and buy fast food at the convenience stores every chance I got. The counselors must have been getting a little worried.
One day we were planning to hike up Mt. Kineo and that morning we had oatmeal for breakfast. Ugh! I ended up not eating except for the few chips I had leftover in the bag of Doritos. Before the hike we were all told to bring our raingear and polypro shirts. I looked up in the sky and determined to myself that it wasn't going to rain so I did not pack my poncho or my polypro. To my amazement it soon started to rain. I not only did not bring my poncho but I was also wearing a cotton shirt. As you probably already know, cotton, when wet, sucks heat away from your body really fast. The counselors made a raincoat for me out of a garbage bag and duct tape, but it only helped a little. Everyone noticed that I was starting to shiver but I tried to be hero-like and pretend everything was fine. By the time we had reached the summit I was shivering like a dog just out of water. The counselors asked me to take out the trail mix I had from my bag and eat it, to keep my body filled with energy. I told them I didn't like trail mix and didn't bring any. The other counselor told me I had to take off my wet shirt and replace it with an extra they had carried because I was at risk of mild hypothermia. Someone offered up a bag of trail mix. The counselors told me to eat a lot of trail mix, run around and drink a lot of water. After that experience I remembered to always bring my poncho and always eat food even if I didn't like it. Some people might call that a bad experience but in truth it was more of a good one. That one experience changed my life like many others and I'm grateful to the counselors for letting it go just far enough to teach me. I learned about nature, about weather, food and about myself - all ingredients on the path of maturity and self-realization.
I have returned to camp every year since. Last year I went to the mountain leadership session. Every day we ate new concoctions. This time I ate everything with no complaints and with ease. One night we had ramen noodles without the soup but with tuna. We also had powdered potatoes with corn and tuna. For some odd reason I began not only to just eat the food but also to like the food.
Now, four years later, I am back once again. I return not just because of the awesome rock climbing and food but because of the vast leaps into the realm of maturity that seem to come from it.
I am now Counselor in Training for the climbing camps and help out with everything. I hope someday to be a professional mountain guide. I have learned the value of hard work and the benefits of exploring the unknown. A simple piece of food has taught me one of life's greatest lessons. Food is like a piece of knowledge from the world and each new interpretation needs to be tried and understood.
Maturity in itself is not defined as one stage in a person's life but more a process that lasts a lifetime. Each day I grow, whether it be by ramen noodles, climbing a new route, or writing an article. Life is a cliff; growth and maturity are handholds to the summit.
Adam Butterfield lives in southern Connecticut where he attends high school and works for a climbing gym. He has attended the Rock Climbing & Adventure camps with Acadia Mountain Guides for 4 years and has completed every session. Adam enjoys leading trad climbs, and Katahdin is one of his favorite climbing areas.
Email nick [at] noumbrella [dot] com with your questions, comments and concerns.
Design and Content © 2002 to 2006 No Umbrella