Articles in the ‘What We’re Reading’ Category

We're Reading: Laughing Boy

Oliver LaFarge, a non-native anthropologist from the East Coast, pursued an interest in native cultures through his years at Harvard and in his post-graduate field work. He eventually became president of the National Association on Indian Affairs thanks to his efforts to raise awareness of these changing cultures. LaFarge possessed a realistic and unsentimental, yet …

We're Reading: Geography of Childhood

Authors Stephen Trimble and Gary Nabhan collaborated on this revolutionary book that examines today’s children and their relationship with nature and wild places. They begin with the premise that children’s experience with wild places has become a luxury, and that our children are no longer playing outside like previous generations. They argue that a connection …

We're Reading: The Magic of Overnight Camp

“What is it about the summer camp that goes so deep under their skin? What is the magic of camp?” Michael Thompson, Ph.D. and co-author of the New York Times bestseller Raising Cain has recently been exploring the answer to this question in his upcoming book Homesick and Happy. Over time, Thompson has observed that …

We're Reading: Waterlines

Ann Weiler Walka is a river runner and a poet. In her book, Waterlines, she merges her two passions into a compilation of poetry and prose about the San Juan River, a river that many Deer Hill adventure summer camp programs journey down during the spring and summer. In Waterlines, Walka shares not only her …

Your Brain on Nature

Participants relax on our Ancient Pathways adventure summer camp 2010, rafting past “Tiger Wall” on the upper stretch of the San Juan River. This is a guest post by Deer Hill Program Leader, Lexi Tuddenham. When we arrive with our students at Deer Hill Basecamp, we pause for a moment at the end of the …

We're Reading: Tao of Leadership

John Heider’s adaptation of the Tao Te Ching adapts Lao Tzu’s writings relevant to the lives of anybody who finds themselves in the position of leader. Heider takes Tao ideas of “How Things Work” and finds lessons about issues central to leadership: ego, conflict, teaching, intervention, listening, creativity, success and failure. Heider lays out the …

What We're Reading: House of Rain

Part outdoor adventure story, part autobiographical opus, and part anthropological investigation, this popular book by Southwest Colorado resident Craig Childs creates a vivid picture of the people who inhabited the Four Corners region a thousand years before. Childs immerses himself in some inspiring but unforgiving areas of Colorado, New Mexico, Arizona and Utah, as he …

What We're Reading: The Hopi Worldview

This book is absolutely wonderful if you have an interest in Native American history and culture. Frank Waters’ “Book of the Hopi” gathers material from interviews with 30 elders from the remote Hopi reservation, describing their spiritual heritage in rewarding detail and sharing some of the secrets of their annual cycle of rituals and ceremonies. …

Blind Leadership

Another fascinating perspective on leadership from a book that’s been keeping me gripped. A trailblazing climber despite being blind since his childhood, Erik Weihenmayer’s story holds innumerable lessons in courage, friendship, and persistence in the face of fear. In the chapter, “Moving Through Darkness”, he recounts a nighttime retreat through a boulder field, from the …

NatGeo features our backyard

Check out the March 2009 issue of National Geographic Adventure, which highlights domestic adventures in Deer Hill’s “backyard”, Colorado, Utah, New Mexico, and Arizona. Their “Best of the Southwest” cover story highlights 20 of the top adventures in our area. From paddling the Colorado River, to exploring Moab’s redrock landscapes, to seeking out petroglyphs carved …