by Sacred Playgrounds | Mar 11, 2025 | The Logic of Camp
Camp builds better people. It is not about the games or the novel activities. It is not about the campfires, s’mores, or silly songs. It is not even really about the new friends or laughing together until your sides hurt. These are the accoutrements, the methods, and...
by Sacred Playgrounds | Jan 4, 2022 | Camp and Culture, The Logic of Camp
Democracy is in peril. Not everyone agrees with this, of course. That, in itself, is part of the problem. Pope Francis had something to say about this in a December 4 speech. He called it “a retreat from democracy.” He reflected, “Democracy requires participation and...
by Sacred Playgrounds | Apr 24, 2018 | Camp Research, Outdoors and Wilderness
The research is screaming at us from nearly every academic field. We nod approvingly, feeling that we are wiser. And then we go on doing exactly the same thing. We sit at our desks in front of computer screens. We demand more automation in our homes and our modes of...
by Sacred Playgrounds | Aug 2, 2017 | The Logic of Camp
We have an education crisis in this country. We live in the age of “alternative facts.” We can argue that something as preposterous as an alternative fact does not exist, but let’s be critical realists for a moment and accept that alternative facts exist because...
by Sacred Playgrounds | Jul 18, 2017 | The Logic of Camp
My youngest son Nathanael has a playground radar. Ever since he was old enough to walk and talk, he could seemingly sense them from miles away. We would be driving down the highway at 60 mph, and he could spot a rusty old slide in the middle of an overgrown field....