The other day I went backpacking near Black Mountain, NC for to find rest and solitude. There were several important things going on at home so I brought my cell phone stay connected. When I reached a high point on the trail, I decided I to check my messages in case there were any important messages (this is only 6 hours after I left home). There happened to be a message in my voice mail that was important enough that I turned around and went back home, abandoning my attempt to find rest and solitude in the wilderness. This is an all to common theme, Nature vs. technology in this day and age. If I would have just waited another 12 hours to check my voice mail, I could have enjoyed my night in the woods, experienced rest and solitude and come back to deal with the “emergency” at home.

Reflecting on this recent experience I was reminded of Richard Louv ‘s book Last Child in the Woods: Saving Our Children from Nature Deficit Disorder. Here is a link to an interview with Louv regarding his thoughts on our children losing their connection to the outdoors.

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=4665933