His father calls his 3-year-old a "tough little bugger" for making it out alive Wednesday. Cody Lundin, who runs a survivalist skills school in Arizona, says the boy's tender age might actually have worked in his favor.
"Little kids don't have any qualms about doing weird stuff," Lundin said. "He probably didn't have any problem burrowing into some leaves or using whatever was around him to keep warm. What hampers a lot of adults is they don't want to get dirty or they're afraid of bugs. Not a little kid."
There's a lesson in there somewhere. I would imagine that the little guy is not old enough to have 'learned' all of the politically correct stuff that goes on nowadays. He was hungry? He probably ate some bugs. Got tired? Curled up under some leaves and went to sleep.
I think that a good deal of the 'societal norms' of today actually work against us in certain situations. As a society, people are so focused on gear, gadgets and stuff that they forget the basic survival skills that are hardwired into our DNA. I admit I'm guilty of it. As it stands now, put me out in the middle of nowhere, and I would have a helluva time surviving.
But I realize this and am now taking steps to correct it. It brought me to this forum and has inspired me to seek out appropriate training so that I can
A. appreciate nature more.
B. survive in the wilderness if I needed to. And just as importantly
C. pass along these skills to my children.
