As a child, I knew every detail of the 20 acres behind our house in the mountains of northern
Colorado. Hours were amplified by riding my horse, catching butterflies, splashing in the
creek, for caddis fly casings and exoskeletons. These were the experiences that shaped my
life.
When I reflect upon my childhood I realize the simplicity of the experience was what
made it so powerful. My mother was not planning all of my discoveries; she simply
allowed them to happen. My parents weren’t driving me all over town to various
activities, I was simply walking out the door and playing outside. My parents weren’t
spending a whole lot of money. All of these experiences were free of charge.
That free experience is what has made me who I am today. I still notice the details,
although many of them escape me with my busy life. My children often point them
My children often point them out to me and my interaction with them is what shapes their
perspective.
My ten year old is comfortable spending time outside. He says his favorite place to
be is up high in the tree in his backyard. He hides treasures up there. Last summer
he made a bold request. “Mom, can you buy me some seeds for my garden?” He
wasn’t asking for a video game or another movie. He was begging to experience
nature firsthand. My five year old admires his brother and can spend hours digging
for worms in the backyard. His favorite place to be is outside with his dump trucks
and tractors.
My childhood experiences are in the core of my being and this is why I founded Wild
Bear Center for Nature Discovery. Wild Bear’s comprehensive efforts to initiate the entire
community to reconnect with the natural world is evidenced by its growth in youth program
participation, its role in the preservation of land and subsequent cleanup of 30 tons of trash
off Mud Lake Open Space, and its long term commitment to create a nature center
facility that is a model of sustainability. Wild Bear is creating a place for youth,
adults and their families to contemplate the magnificence of the natural world.
All of these efforts are vehicles for changing the way of the world. As Richard
Louv, author of Last Child in the Woods: Saving Our Children from Nature-Deficit
Disorder, states, “Unlike television, nature does not steal time, it amplifies it.” With
this generation becoming more and more unconnected to the natural world and
focused on electronics, what will happen when generation after generation is without
this connection? Who will be the future stewards of the earth?
It is up to us adults to plant the seeds. It is not expensive. It does not take a lot of
effort. It means that we remove some of the structured activities, the electronic
devices and we go outside to play. Do it. It will be worth it.
Jill Dreves, Founder, Wild Bear Center for Nature Discovery
