1 post tagged “camping”
It was a beautiful camping weekend in Malibu, but it almost didn't happen.
The battery in my Honda Civic decided to die as I was running a final errand (picking up the challah and some flashlight batteries). My AAA had lapsed, so I re-signed up over the phone and the dispatcher informed me it would be at least two hours before they could get a truck out to my location. My wife was mid-Wilshire with our daughter at the doctor's office--the little one had a serious ear infection--so I had no choice but to sit tight and wait.
About three hours later my son and I were on the road. But because I didn't double-check the Google Maps directions (d'oh!) I ended up overshooting the actual road (Malibu Canyon) and then took a wrong turn up a steep, winding road (Coral Canyon) that terminated in a lookout someone over the mountains. My brakes where squishy and burning by the time I'd backtracked, but I managed to get a hold of a fellow camper via cellphone. My son and I arrived around 7pm at the campground; there was just enough light to get the tent up and make some dinner. Whew.
Malibu Creek is a place where the TV show MASH and some scenes from the original Planet of the Apes where shot. It's a beautiful mix of meadows, scrublands and tall canyon walls. There's a natural rock pool and lake. However, it all has a well-worn feel, like maybe we've dug in a little too deep. There are animal-proof trash cans, porta-potties and picnic benches along every path. I guess it's a typical of Southern California campground--it's like you're camping in a parking lot: blacktop, dead grass, very little shade and noisy campers. But hey, I was with a pack of 20 wild cub scouts and their families. I wouldn't have wanted to camp next to us.
Overall, we had a blast. It's so interesting to see my boy--who not so long ago was my baby boy--acting like a mature seven year old, exploring, playing, arguing, negotiating, etc. with his peers. I kept imagining Lord of the Flies... This particular pack is more like Boys' Town than cub scouts. These are not kids from broken homes or poor families; they're all fairly well-off and the parents seem adjusted, but there is an abnormally high number of boys in the pack with emotional and/or cognitive development issues. One even has violent tendencies. Another taught my son the "f" word. Thankfully, one of my son's best friends, a year older and in a different den, was there. Aside from his family, I didn't really know anyone else.
The one other dad who engaged me in conversation really just wanted to talk about Jesus. It became apparent after a half hour our so, when everything came back to the strength he received from his faith. More power to him, but he ignored my non-so-subtle verbal queues--"for me, religion is very personal and private" and "it's great we live in a world where we're free to believe whatever we want" etc. He wouldn't let it alone, so I found an opening and mentioned that my faith was Judaism. I could tell he felt a little embarrassed--kind of like, oh I didn't realize... and then the conversation abruptly ended.
It was a little awkward around the campfire. To his credit, the next morning he made it a point to shake my hand and thank me for the great conversation.
Friday night, I briefly lit the Shabbat candles in the tent. Later, before bed, my son and I toasted wine & grapjuice and ate the challah. There's was a special moment before my son drifted off to sleep. Groggy and grinning in his sleeping bag, he said "Dad, I'm so glad that you're my dad, and that we're here and that it's Shabbat."
I replied that I was happy, too. Probably more than he would ever know.
