Rite of Passage

Interested in a rite of passage for your teenager?

This year’s rite of passage experience was for teens who have been part of Wild Earth’s year-round programming. Below is the invitation:

If you’re reading this, the time has come (or is soon coming) to acknowledge and appreciate the transformation your teen is undergoing, and to offer them a challenge so they might harness the heroic part of their heart.  This is the time for adults to talk openly about how the autumn of childhood has arrived, and in a sacred context, with peers, to ask them questions like “who are you becoming?”, “what parts of yourself do wish to celebrate?” and “what parts of yourself are you ready to leave behind?”

We’re offering this experience for teens whose families have chosen to include Wild Earth as part of their child’s upbringing.

• Teens enrolled in current Wild Earth programs (must be age 13 by beginning of ’14 school year)
• Wild Earth instructors, including Summer Camp teen staff (CITs must also meet above criteria)

Teens will be asked to prepare over the course of the school year and preparation will be integrated into existing Wild Earth programs (Atlatl, Artemis, Ropes, etc).  As such, enrollment in one of our current year-round programs is a requirement. Please contact us if you are not planning to enroll in a year-round program, but are interested in the rite of passage for your teen.

What is required?

Parent Support & Participation

We believe that a rite of passage cannot happen in a vacuum. We look forward to creating opportunities for you to discuss what you’re seeing in your children and how your family life is changing.

We will hold several parent meetings throughout the year. We are excited to create opportunities for parents to connect.

We will be asking for your help, support and participation — above and beyond what we ask for in our regular programming including: coordinating various logistics, bringing potluck meals, and other camp-related tasks.

Payment By Donation

In offering this rite of passage we are responding to a yearning for connection, witnessing, nature and relationship. We will not assign this a dollar value; we feel this is priceless. At the end of the rite of passage, you will be invited to make a donation that is within your budget and pays it forward for the next group of adolescents to have similar experiences.

As you read this, please keep in mind that this information is only intended for parents and not for teens.

Teens will be told that they are preparing for a 24-hour solo, but they won’t be told much more.

We want parents to understand and feel connected to the rite of passage that we’re designing, but we want to keep much of this in the realm of the unknown for the teens.

If you are considering a rite of passage for your son or daughter, we encourage you to share bare-bones amount of detail with your teen about what is going to happen.  Being in the unknown is an essential component of this experience for the teens. Going into the mystery provides potent opportunities for self-reflection and insight into what arises when headed towards the unknown.