wild

(a little back story- As a senior in high school I remember reading a magazine article about a young man who walked off into the Alaskan wilderness with little more than a rifle and a bag of rice. I'd occasionally thought about the guy, wondered if he were crazy, wondered what it must have been like, wondered how he came to that place where his life ended.

Then this week on Charlie Rose there was an interview of Sean Penn & Eddie Vedder - I was only half listening while getting Charles settled with his reading assignment for the day when I heard mention of the name "Alexander Supertramp" and I was startled to recognize the name. I listened to the interview and that night hunted around for more information on the boy and his journey. I ended up picking up the account of his life and reading it in just a few hours....)

I finished "Into the Wild" yesterday. It's one of those stories that needs time to digest. I've read a number of reviews of the movie - but most are really opinions on the character of a dead boy. I suppose I will be no different.

I think that the author of the book was very tangled up with his personal sense of empathy for Chris. I also think that there isn't any way to hear the stories of the people who "knew Alex" and to have the slightest familiarity with that desire to just get the hell out - and not feel some connection. It was a quietly forceful tale. I don't think I can say it was enjoyable - no account of death is. But, since briefly reading the article almost 15 years ago stayed with me, I am certain this will be one of those things that I mull over in the small hours of the morning for many, many years to come.

During the Penn/Vedder interview one of them said the audience is basically either going to love or hate Chris. The author said he received so many letters after the Outdoor article back in 93 that just bashed the kid for his stupidity and selfishness. I have to wonder exactly how far these people have removed themselves from their youthful ideals (or if they had any) and brash decisions made without any experience to back them. I can't believe that desire to walk off into the world and recreate oneself is a rarity among the 16-25 year old kids. It certainly held an attraction for me. It's just the acting on that idea that is uncommon.

Chris decided how he wanted to live and took a leap that, in the end, killed him. But look at the world he experienced that hardly a fraction of the rest of us ever will.

We all make choices (and mistakes) that could kill us: smoking, drinking, speeding, the jobs we do, the hours we work, the people we associate with, the food we eat, running a red light, and so on ad infinitum. So it could take a little longer to kill us, or it could be instantaneous. What joy do they add to our lives? Do these choices nourish our souls? Are we condemned as selfish fools?

He crammed a lot of life into what he had. He accomplished feats of the will & flesh that few others could claim. If instead he had shoved the desire to see & do down into his guts and just existed the remaining years of his life in the way society approves of - would that have been better? And for whom?

His youthful freedom from responsibility gave him that brief opportunity to follow his heart. He took it.

Into The Wild

I picked this book up today after the homeschooler's park date. I'm being blackmailed to leave the pc by Cole who is threatening to make the kids pick up if I don't go outside this instant and shoot the bow.

I'll tell you more about the story behind the book & my interest in it. Later.

Into The Wild

My Five

Five shots. Twenty Yards. One dead deer.

It looks like only 4 arrows, but it's five.


This is a photo from where I stood with the bow.
Charles told me... "Just think - this could be a real deer soon!"

When I said I might be too nervous when faced with the real thing he told me to just pretend it's the target. Then I won't have to be nervous. I hope it's that easy. But I doubt it!

A Funny

My mother, father, brother & I tend to enjoy exchanging smart a$$ comments when we get together. Sometimes it's like a game to see which of us can get the others to laugh, sometimes it's more like trying to see how long we can keep the ball rolling.

Well - it seems that Charles has inherited this "talent" - he had me laughing till I almost cried last night!

Cole and I had watched a movie and afterward we got into a discussion of time travel and it's confounding contradictions. As my brain slowly twisted into a pretzel Cole quipped "All roads lead to Rome!" So I responded "But, you can't get there from here!"

Later, as I tucked the kids in, I asked Charles:

"Is there anywhere in the world you can't get to from here?"
Charles thought for a bit.... "Antarctica?"
"But people have been to Antarctica."
"Not from here!"
"Alright, Charles. Can you think of anywhere, anywhere, that you can't get to from here?"
Again he thought silently for a moment. Then he grinned and replied...

"Uranus?"

I Cracked completely up!