By Stephen C. Schultz
The air was thin and cool. Stars speckled the sky as the faint, flashing strobe of a commercial airline silently glided across the cosmos. The leaves rustled in a slight breeze that carried the unmistakable hum of crickets through the canyon. I turned and noticed the feather of a bird of prey dangling from the limb of a pine. There was a nervous energy that seemed out of place in such calm surroundings.
This was the beginning of an early morning Phase Review for three students enrolled at Oxbow Academy. They stood at the trailhead, a little disheveled and groggy. The boys circled up and had a brief conversation with the therapists about situations in their lives where they had made decisions that betrayed the trust of their parents and other loved ones. In fact, some of their behaviors had been downright painful for others to endure.
The conversation then shifted to the various struggles of life. The therapists pointed out that the trail they would hike represented “life’s journey.” Then, without another word, they were off, hiking up the trail.
The boys started at a good pace. Things were smooth, and their focus was strong. About fifty yards into the hike, at a very steep incline, one boy began to show signs of fatigue and slowed down due to the rocky terrain. He stepped off the trail and leaned against a tree, whining and complaining about how hard it was. He said this wasn't what he was expecting and that he wasn’t an outdoorsy type of kid. He tried every trick in the book to get the therapists to let him turn back.
Then the conversation turned to how he reacted when things got hard with his parents. There was silence… then one slow step… then another. He was back on the trail, slowly making his way to the top.
The other boys were doing better, not struggling as much with the hike or the steep incline. The therapists decided to take a break and check in with the students. Everyone stopped for a breather. The sun was beginning to rise over the mountain peak, and streams of sunlight danced through the tree limbs.
A discussion followed about the difficulty of the trail and how it related to life in general. The students noted that sometimes life is easy, and sometimes it’s hard. Sometimes the path flattens out, and other times it becomes steep. The boys demonstrated insight throughout the conversation. Then, the therapist asked the first boy, who had struggled up the mountainside, why he had occasionally walked off the trail.
The boy answered, “Because it was hard to walk on the rocks.”
“Was it easier to walk through the brush beside the trail?” the therapist asked.
“No… it was harder!” the student replied.
“OK,” the therapist said as he started hiking up the hill.
The terrain became steeper, but the boys could now see the crest of the canyon and the summit they were striving toward. Spirits lifted, and there was a small burst of renewed energy. Once at the top, they were greeted with an amazing view of the valley below and the sunrise to the east. They sat, rested, drank some much-needed water, and had the opportunity to read and process their parent narratives—letters from their parents and loved ones sharing how the boys’ behaviors had impacted their families.
There was laughter and tears. There was anger and joy. There was deep discussion as well as moments of solitude and reflection in the early morning on this remote mountaintop.
It was a memorable experience—one where both physical and emotional struggles were overcome. It was a place where courage, determination, care, and insight were fostered. It was an opportunity to be nurtured in the strict but loving arms of Mother Nature.
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