When I took off in May for my camp experience I did so with the intention of “getting it out of my system”. I thought I was too old to be so interested in the woods, thought that I needed to “grow up” and get a real job. The closer the end of camp came, the more I dreaded going back to the real world and finding a job that I didn’t enjoy.
But that is certainly not what I did. I don’t adjust well, and when I find something I enjoy doing, I don’t tend to give up on it very easily. So instead of applying for jobs that I didn’t want, and that would ultimately make me miserable until I quit, I stayed wild.
Working with an outdoor education company has really fulfilled me, and made my adjustment back to the real world much more bearable. I sometimes get to go backpacking for days, I sometimes get to play games and initiatives with school groups, I sometimes get to spend the entire day cleaning gear and organizing shelves. The important part is that I am outside (even in a dirty garage) and I feel so much closer to happiness there.
Moving to North Carolina has changed my expectations of what I should do. Why should I go to a job I hate everyday? Why should I do a job that doesn’t help me grow? I Shouldn’t. And I won’t. Sometimes that makes me feel like a spoiled kid throwing a temper tantrum, but at the same time – at 25 how can I settle for something to make me miserable.
I haven’t adjusted well to life outside of camp, with no real structure and routine. But it’s been easier knowing that I am still doing what I love, I am still learning, and I am still having fun.
I won’t trade my dreams for the expectations of society, I’ll make my adjustments the way I want to.