S
ome of my best memories involve tent camping. I was
a Girl Scout during much of my childhood, and shortly
after entering high school in California, I was a Venture
Scout. Camping, backpacking and hiking were major parts
of my life before college. The sights I saw, the connections
I made, the things I accomplished in the outdoors – I always
returned home with a sense of peace that most of the other
kids at my high school could not fathom. And I also made
lifelong friends whom I still consider "family," even though
I've moved 1,000 miles away.
But through all the old memories and fun times in the
outdoors with my friends, I must not forget to look back
toward home. While my parents were not outdoorsy people
in the least, they had the wisdom to recognize the value in
it. I was lucky – even though I may not have realized it at
the time.
I remember my mom taking me to Girl Scout day camps
when I was little, and my dad, who tirelessly dropped me
off and picked me up at countless Venture meetings and
long weekends of playing in the woods. On a Friday, he
would say goodbye to his seemingly sane and tidy daughter.
Then, the following Sunday, he would be greeted by a
stinky, greasy-haired monster, who sometimes had a limp
because of the giant blisters on her feet.
Whether I had been car
camping close by, wandering in the desert for days or
sleeping on a mountain, my dad always greeted me the same
way: smiling, amused and glad I was home, accompanied by
his famous line: "That's a lot of foul laundry you got there."
My brother, who was a Boy Scout, received the same
treatment. Because my parents didn't have the money to
take us away on grand, expensive family vacations, they
sent us back to nature instead. That was one of the best
things they ever did for us.
So now when I go camping as an adult, I quietly applaud,
from afar, those parents who have the good sense to take
their children with them. And I'm especially impressed by
SLEEPING
OUTSIDE
Story and photos by Jenny Nguyen
Venture
Crew
167
of
Garden
Grove,
California,
backpacking
in
the
Minarets
of
the
Sierra
Nevada
Mountains
in
2007.
26 NEBRASKAland • JUNE 2017
