The Interpreted Rock

By Laurie Frost My last morning in the RedCliff wilderness therapy field starts with me and Steve Schultz, the media rep for RCA, leaving to go to the camp just over the hill. I feel kind of leery to leave "my boys," as I think of them, but I need to find some RCA girls around here to interview. Yellow Badger comes to lead us to the camp just over the hill (an all girls group). I walk into a clearing and feel several pairs of eyes on me. I'm dirty already, but not nearly as much as these girls. They introduce themselves, from Jessica (who's only been in RCA for eight days) to Silent Raven, a quiet girl whose hair is matted with dirt. She's been out for 96 days. I turn to an olive-skinned girl on my left, whose long brown hair is plaited in two tight pigtails. "What's your name?" I ask. "My name's Kaylani," she chatters. "I'm part Hawaiian. There are lots of people who think I don't look Hawaiian, but I am. ...

By Laurie Frost I roll out of my sleeping bag first thing the next morning, stiff, sore and cold. (Luckily the sun was coming up to dispel the chill in a short time. Then, of course, I was too hot. Go figure.) I eat breakfast, oats with some apple sliced in it and honey over it. Hunter looks over my shoulder as I stir it up. "That looks good," he says. I instantly want to give him some - I can get French toast at home - but there's a strict no-food-sharing policy at RedCliff . So I just say, "Yeah, it does, doesn't it?" and keep stirring. I find out that morning I'm not much of a campfire cook. The apples are still crunchy and the oats are soggy before I finally give up and just make myself a Scooby ( RedCliff slang for an ash cake). How do these kids do this, anyway? I think. I'm a tough girl, and I can't seem to manage . That was definitely the theme of the day - I wasn't as tough as I thought, and I definitely wasn...

By LAURIE FROST My experience with RedCliff Ascent wilderness therapy program began, as usual, with me pulling away from the house 45 minutes late. I had to be in Enterprise at 8:30, and unless my '87 Chevy Cavalier was going to sprout wings like Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, I was not going to make my appointment on time. It was already 8:15, for crying out loud. I hunched over the steering wheel and imagined Steve Schultz, the RedCliff media rep and the one who would be escorting me around in this wilderness camp, standing in the Enterprise Office, looking at his watch and huffing and puffing. "Why isn't she here yet?" I imagined him saying, tapping a wing-toed shoe. "We need to get out there now!" That image of Steve, and my obsessing with time and lateness, was two of the many illusions that would be shattered in the next three days. When I pulled up to the RedCliff offices at a quarter after 9, I had little idea what was awaiting me. But the firs...

I have been traveling quite a bit over the last two months. This has certainly had an impact on my blog submissions. For that I apologize. But the impact that I feel the most strongly about is the time away from my family . While it is nice to see new and exciting places, there is a sense of emptiness in the experience when you can't be there with loved ones. One thing I have learned through my time away from home is that happiness in life is not found in the "Things" or the "Stuff" acquired, but in the "Shared" experiences and memories spent with family . I have listed below my  "Top 5" favorite blog posts from my blog that have to do with family and associated experiences. I hope they encourage memories of experiences and lessons learned in your own family . You may even want to re-evaluate how you spend your time. Enjoy! "Family Night"...Much more than fun and games! The Pizza Caper...A Nine Year Old's Sneaky Ad...

By Stephen C. Schultz There is a record number of people living in multi-generational household's with parents and grandparents. The poor economy and weak job market is a reality. Most families in the United States and many from around the world recognize the economy is a problem that needs rectified. Regardless of political persuasion, there is an impact felt by those who are retired, or about to retire. These “ Baby Boomers ” in the U.S. as well as families around the world are faced with adult children who never leave “the nest”. Even when their children go off to University, they are often financially and socially encumbered by young adults who spread their wings in the search for independence after graduation, only to return home discouraged. The Pew Research Center found in a recent study , that 58 million Americans live in multi-generational homes. adult children between the ages of 25 to 34 living with their parents doubled between 1980 and 2012. We also know that ...

By Stephen C. Schultz This week has brought some very poignant and sad discussions. A very dear and valued colleague of mine shared with a group of us that her son, who has had some developmental difficulties throughout his young life, was having problems with his sight. She spent time this last weekend at a local Children’s Hospital and they informed her he was going blind because his brain was beginning to atrophy, and that it was terminal. She sat, with tears in her eyes, asking for our emotional support. She said, “I just want to raise him and love him like I’ve done these few short years.” I received a message today from a long time friend. She stated she was going through a divorce and that the relationship with her husband had deteriorated over the last 20 years. My heart sank and I was saddened not by the fact that she was separating from her husband, because I know she is strong and will be OK,   but by the fact that she has to go through the pa...

By Stephen C. Schultz Over the last few years or so I have noticed a surge in media coverage about bullying. My 8 th grade daughter Amanda mentioned the other night at dinner how a boy in one of her classes called her the “B” word in a totally unprovoked interaction. The boy sat directly behind her in class and they had just returned from the library. When I asked her why he would do that, she simply said; “I don’t know…I think he has a rough time at home and I think he is adopted.” Those certainly aren’t excuses for that kind of behavior nor does that particular life situation "cause" kids to be that way. However, Amanda realized he had some struggles in his life that most likely contributed to his behavior and she did not take it personal. While the comment probably took my daughter by surprise, she had the insight and confidence to weather that brief eighth grade social storm. The dinner discussion reminded me of a childhood experience I had with bullying....