Rats in a Cage

There's a perception that going places with kids is hard. Sometimes too hard. Dreaded outings that come to mind include the weekly supermarket shop, late night dinner parties and pretty much any type of appointment whether it's with the the hair dresser, dentist or accountant. The process of getting our tax return done this year with two children in tow was definitely highly comical and somewhat embarrassing. The fact that the chariot didn't actually fit through the door into the building only added to the impending shamozzle. But it seems even a presumed family friendly outing to the local park or playgroup can quickly turn into chaos with an overtired infant and overstimulated toddler.

When what seem like simple and necessary daily outings are in fact anything but, it's no wonder that an attempt at an overnight, week or month long journey into the wilderness is viewed by many as either over ambitious or just plain delusional. Yet we seem drawn to it. Maybe it's the fresh air and natural light or maybe it's the lack of physical boundaries; the feeling of being freer to some extent. Time seems to slip away without the usual restlessness that comes with doing nothing. Life's stresses and problems appear somewhat more insignificant. In the bush the kids are noticeably happier, less demanding and content. They can entertain themselves for hours. They wear themselves out - but in a good way.

We've been thinking lately about the way in which we live. Living in a house means we are inside unless we go outside. What if we could live in a way that we were outside unless we went inside? A seemingly subtle difference yet potentially quite a profound one. So in the tradition of seeking challenge and adventure we're thinking about doing an experiment: Twenty Eight Days in a Tent.

It's not meant to be a holiday nor a way of escaping the 'real world'. We're not starting a commune and we have no unrealistic expectations that we could actually live this way in the long term...although I guess you never know what may eventuate! It would be purely an experiment to see what happens when we live outside our cage; an experiment that we dreamt up only a few days ago, one that is not overly well thought out or planned at this stage, but is nonetheless quite exciting to think about.