“My kid couldn’t go a week without his phone!”

I can’t tell you how many times over the years parents have said something to the

effect of, “My kid couldn’t go a week without their phone!” This usually comes from

moms and dads who are considering sending their son or daughter out on one of

our wilderness trips, and it captures a view that many people today have of youth

and adults under the age of 25. I have heard people say, “they couldn’t last without

their phone,” “they need to be able to talk to me,” and “I can’t get them to put it

down at home, and you think they can go on a wilderness trip?” My answer has been

(and thankfully still is) “yes!”

Now don’t get me wrong, I have seen young people nervously step off the bus into a

group of strangers and attempt to “not feel so alone” by reaching out to their friends

through a couple of touches of a screen. Some may even initially agree with their

parents’ comments. But as they slowly get engaged and start meeting other similarly

excited and nervous people, they catch a glimpse of the potential in the adventure

before them, and they go to their phones less and less. This all comes to a head when

they are dropped off at their “put-in” (their launching point into the wilderness),

and to the relief of some and disappointment of others, the phones stop working and

the only relational choice before them is how they will interact with the people

around them.

Five or ten days later, the people who emerge from the wilderness hardly resemble

those I dropped off just days earlier. They truly are a “group”. On the bus ride back I

hear them laugh, joke, reminisce, and make promises about staying in touch. The

tone of their voice (I can’t see them because I’m driving) gives it all away…they care

deeply about each other in a genuine and unabashed way.