“We need the tonic of wildness...At the same time that we are earnest to explore and learn all things, we require that all things be mysterious and unexplorable, that land and sea be indefinitely wild, unsurveyed and unfathomed by us because unfathomable. We can never have enough of nature.”
HENRY DAVID THOREAU, 'WALDEN: OR, LIFE IN THE WOODS'
The world is full of adventures and sometimes all it takes is a little imagination to bring them to life. The above image was captured in the Black Mountain in Wales on a wet and wild afternoon, when the trees towered like the long thin legs of giants around one Tiny Explorer in particular.
It's this environment that is so empowering to children. It frees not only their energy, but their spirit and their minds. Wrapped up in the cosiest clothing nothing can stop them conquering worlds within worlds, within worlds.
As a child I used to dream of Narnia, often inching open the creaky door of the wardrobe in the back bedroom and peering behind musty fur coats to find the other worldness that I so ardently wanted to exist there.
I have no doubt that within the remarkable imagination of C.S.Lewis, Narnia was not a figment, it was a reality. It is all around us. So go out, discover your Narnia.
TÖASTIE RAINCOAT | BLACK & MARINE WHALE PRINT
"Once a King in Narnia, always a King in Narnia. But don't go trying to use the same route twice. Indeed, don't try to get there at all. It'll happen when you're not looking for it. And don't talk too much about it even among yourselves. And don't mention it to anyone else unless you find that they've had adventures of the same sort themselves. What's that? How will you know? Oh, you'll know all right. Odd things, they say-even their looks-will let the secret out. Keep your eyes open."
C.S.LEWIS, THE LION THE WITCH AND THE WARDROBE
If you are looking for inspiration for your next adventure, The Family Adventure Project will give you more than enough ideas! Staggeringly, a poll that they conducted discovered that:
• 50% of kids had never taken part in any adventure sports.
• 41% of kids had never taken part in a scavenger hunt.
• 44% of parents played outside as a child more than their kids do.
• 38% of parents said they’re more protective of kids than their parents were.
• 40% of parents said they don’t have time or money to do adventure activities with their kids.
The saddest statistic I find here is the parents who say they don't have the time or the money to adventure with their children. But nature is bountiful and all around, if you open your eyes to see. Adventure can simply be finding a local wood or park and peeking under rocks to see who lives there.
✨ NATURE MAKES US HAPPY ✨
TÖASTIE CASHMERE BEANIE | RUST
“Something researchers in Japan recognized about urban life is that when we are indoors we rely mostly on our eyes and ears, but our other senses are underutilized.”
This above is quoted from an article by the NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC | WE ARE WIRED TO BE OUTSIDE and is so worth a read.
TÖASTIE CLOUD PUFFER | FOREST GREEN
So whether it is climbing a mountain, flying a kite, building a den, camping in the garden, chasing butterflies, searching the hedgerows for berries, getting out on the water kayaking or paddle boarding or just BEING there. It all stimulates little minds, don’t let your children miss out on discovering the world around them.
"It was like exploring a place that you have seen in a dream, where everything is just where you expect it and yet everything is a surprise."
ARTHUR RANSOME, SWALLOWS AND AMAZONS