Eyes that see the good in things- July 16, 2018

Did you see the recent online article by ABC News about how “glamping” (short for glamor-camping) has become available on Governor’s Island in New York City? It’s part of an offering of options made available by Collective Retreats, a company that offers glamping options around the nation.

Collective Retreats offers Summit Tents and Journey Tents. For a more luxurious stay, the hands-down choice would be the Summit Tents, dubbed “The Elevated Getaway” with 1,500 thread count sheets, complimentary gourmet breakfast, campfire s’mores kit, environmentally-friendly spa bath products, spa robes, plush Turkish towels and private bathrooms. Guests staying in a Summit Tent can even get breakfast in bed.

But that’s not all. Outlook Shelters will be built soon, according to Collective Retreat, which are “full-service suites with a beautifully designed bedroom, kitchen and bathroom. These re-purposed shipping crates fold out to provide a 180-degree glass encased bedroom with optimal views of the harbor right from your bed.”

For now, Collective Retreats market their retreat on Governor’s Island as a peaceful oasis nestled near the hills of the historic island, only a quick ferry ride from downtown Manhattan. Once you get there, you’ll be surrounded by sprawling green space with unparalleled views of the New York Harbor and the Statue of Liberty. A way to get back to nature in the middle of the city. Hmmm….

Where do you stand on the camping question? There’s a group of people who love to rough it when they go camping. Some of them hike into their campsites, bringing only what they can carry in their backpacks. Sometimes they sleep in a tent, sometimes they build a make-shift shelter out of a tarp and some rope, sometimes they just sleep out in the open. Definitely not for me.

Others sleep in tents, but want to be close to the common comforts and amenities, so they set up their tent close to bathrooms and shower facilities. They pack a vehicle full of stuff to make their stay as comfortable as possible: tent, air beds, air pumps, pillows, bedding, lanterns, fans, rugs, towels, clothes, dishes, kettles, food, cleaning supplies and the list goes on. This group of campers is tired by the time they get to their destination and then it’s time to set everything up. This used to be me, but not so much anymore.

Then there’s the group who likes the outdoors, but wants more of the comforts of home. They arrive to their campsites with large trailers or recreation vehicles they back into their campsites. They tend to get their camper ready to go at the start of the camping season and then just re-stock after each camping trip. Maybe that could be me? I don’t think so, though.

I have to confess that I grew up as a camper and then kind of became a never-camper. If I’m going on vacation, I like those hotels with the high beds and many, fluffy white pillows. However, I have camping memories that I wouldn’t trade for anything. Those memories are what makes me encourage young families to go camping together.

I came from a family with six kids and we camped in a pop-up camper. Bedtime conversations with eight people in a camper can get really interesting. Rather than read stories at bedtime, on camping trips my mom would have the whole family “write” a story. Either she or my dad would usually start the story and get it to an interesting point. Then in the middle of a sentence, they would name someone else to take over the story. It was amazing the spins that those stories could take as each of us added our own touch to the story. Camping just seems to draw people closer together, because they have to be.

We laugh at some of the not-so-great times like when the whole family got some kind of stomach bug. Trust me when I say that was not a fun experience, when the nearest bathroom was a trek down the road. We even laugh about those stories. Now.

As we grew older, got married and started having families of our own, we continued with the camping tradition. One of the pictures in that ABC News glamping article prompted most of these memories to come back again. The picture was simply a picture of a very comfortable looking bed in a tent, with bedside tables and lamps.

The memory requires a little back story. For several years, we held a cousins’ party at a little park by Valley City called Clausen Springs. It was a good place to camp at the time, since we had little kids and our parents lived nearby, just in case we needed a storm home or showers. We were all camping in tents at that time, except my oldest sister who had a little pop-up and my cousin who had a pick-up camper. Those of us in tents usually felt that the people in campers had an easier experience and we often let them know that they weren’t really camping.

One year my cousin, whose family slept in sleeping bags inside the camper, was teasing my sister-in law for the matching sheets and comforter on her bed inside the tent. I think the next year, my brother and sister-in-law spruced up their tent a little more with matching bedside tables and lamps. The year after, they added a recliner and a vase of flowers. You can tell they were young, full of energy and didn’t have kids yet.

That was the last year we camped there, though. My parents moved away, and they were the common denominator that drew us all there. Without them close by, we moved on to more comfortable sites and nicer lakes. It’s funny how a picture in an article can bring back all kinds of memories. That’s good, because that’s what the camping was about.

After a while though, even the bad things become memories we can laugh at, like the year we all got sick or the year my brother’s Suburban broke down. Although it’s not a great memory for my brother, It was a triumphant moment for my brother-in-law. He got a picture of his Ford truck pulling out of that Minnesota lake campground towing not only his own camper and boat, but my brother’s Suburban, as well.

Although these stories make for funny memories now, the story that maybe matters more is in remembering the good times, and there were plenty of those. Our kids got to know each other fishing, canoeing, swimming, exploring the springs, catching fireflies and looking for frogs. Special memories were made singing around the campfire, especially when my dad would pull out his guitar. The kids would make s’mores around the campfire and then fall asleep in the lawn chairs with sticky, marshmallow covered faces. It was there that we laid on the ground to watch the northern lights put on one of the most spectacular shows I’ve ever seen.

Those are the kinds of stories I want to remember, because those are the real stories of our own glamorous camping trips.

We would love to share local stories about the good things your eyes are seeing.

Stop in to share your stories with us, give us a call at 947-2417 or e-mail us at [email protected]. Or send a letter to Eyes That See the Good in Things, c/o Allison Lindgren, The Transcript, 6 8th St N., New Rockford, ND 58356.