Rite of Passage

At my son's School, there is a tree. In that tree is a tree house. Now, you may think, "oh how cute and fun." Then you see the giant Oak.

Dangerous, you say? Well, let me preface this entry by saying that the methodology around these parts is, "If you can do it, then you CAN do it." No one should be doing this feat if they need help, a boost, and so on. It's all about you, your confidence and your upper body strength, of which it seems small kids have at a disproportionate rate. I cannot even haul myself across the monkey bars these days!

What I love about this treehouse is what it stands for. The kids try tirelessly to climb up the wrecking ball to reach "Stage one," gaining confidence as they contemplate stage two. Through their own creativity, they then find their way up a rope or inch up by using loose tree bark as foot-holds. Usually, we see 7th graders up at the top, while the younger kids struggle to just find a way up the wrecking ball. From the moment these children start school, this is the goal, a rite of passage, a must-archive moment prior to 8th grade graduation.

Today at Summer Camp, I watched as a bunch of soon-to-be first graders made it past stage one, stage two and so on. As I said, I love the tree, but not sure my blood-pressure is ready for this...

So.... I'll just keep reminding Ry to look down every now and then, and make it very clear that he is on his own getting himself out of the tree. He has made it to the first branch - which I will refer to as "Stage 2"- but I am not ready for the rest.

 

Posted with Blogsy