Almost a year has gone by since I began my journey as a lowley youth worker trying to find my place amidst the inner workings of the beast I refer to as "the outdoor industry".
If you remember my blog from a year ago that described my three-week bout in hell that landed me my certificates in kayak guiding and wilderness first aid, you will remember the choice words I used to describe the experience and the internal battle I was enduring while trying to figure out whether or not I could "hack it" in this new world I had encountered.
Well, I believe it's safe to say: I've made it! That may be a contested statement depending on who you talk to, but regardless I feel comfortable wearing my new 'quick-dry' pants* and Tivo sandles* (must-have's in the industry - gotta' keep up with the Campbell's ya know). I say this in my elation of passing my Advanced Wilderness First Aid training, a course that had me waking up in cold sweats and anxiety-ridden halucinations weeks before I left. The best decision I could have made was taking the course where I did: The Middle of Nowhere Quadra Island, B.C.
The last time I was on Quadra Island when I was 7 and all I remember was that my parents took us to a week-long bible family camp full of games, canoeing and there was a tent full of dress-up clothes that I spent
way too much time in. Needless to say, my Advanced Wilderness First Aid Training DID NOT remind me of Family Camp! That being said, there were some moments during the course that conjured up the same feelings that only bible-camp can create: being holed-up in a wood lodge with no outside entertainment except our own imaginations and bad humour and of course, dress-up!
The course was 10 days long and gruelling if you count the amount of hours spent indoors while being surrounded by some of the most pristine wilderness I've ever seen! But lots of fun was to be had playing "Doctor" and "Patient" and rehearsing all of the worst-case-scenarios that could happen out in the wild (which can certainly put a damper on a weekend stroll in the woods, but as we're told:
preparation is key!).
There were 28 participants in total and 2 instructors and I believe its safe to say there may never again be such a ecletic group of people in the such a small space for such a length of time. Wow! would be a word used to describe the energy, the stories, and the relationships that were formed during that week. We were certainly lucky to have Doc and Yukie teaching the ways of Wilderness Medicine. Doc, who describes himself as a recovering marine, was a medic in the U.S. Navy and has since seen the light and converted. The man has some incredible stories to share for pretty much every major wilderness disaster you can imagine, which definately added excitement to our days. I'm also pretty much certain that I would have failed if Doc was willing to entertain the endless verbal diahrrea that exploded from my mouth every 10 minutes....
And Yukie...... all I can say is that she's a Japanese fire-cracker that reminded me of a good drug: it's easy to get addicted!
I could go on and on about the people I met and the stories I heard about lives so inherently different from my own. People who live on secluded Islands and children who've been raised my the Ocean and the Land. I found it difficult to return to the city, as I always do, but it felt good knowing that it's possible to live a different way.
Anyways, the games of another season have begun. Next up: 2nd Level Guides Training and Exam. Be sure to stay tuned to see whether or not I master the art of
the Eskimo Roll!
BOOYA
