Why I Love the Black Rock Scouts There have been heated debates and concerns about the appropriateness of kids at Burning Man. Some people are concerned about having to monitor their behavior in front of kids. Other people, mostly non-burners, are concerned about setting the youngsters on a straight path to Hell. Concerns like these caused groups like the Black Rock Scouts (a theme camp for kids and their attending parents) to wonder what’s next. I pondered on what to say if confronted by some who is against kids at Burning Man. I had awesome self-righteous come backs all loaded up and ready to fire back at anybody who says, “Leave those kids at home!” I fantasized of thundering out a brilliant come back that would lay out a group of detractors on the field. Out of the after-battle mist, somebody would start a slow clap that would culminate in applause. I think somewhere in that fantasy I fought off some paramilitary bad guys with some new found martial art I never trained for. Needless to say, that never happened. Now, let’s get to why I love the Black Rock Scouts. Personally, I organize the Black Rock Scouts because it is fun. I have a daughter who is perfect for Burning Man and since I work a lot in the alternative world, Burning Man is a great father-daughter vacation. My wife is not thrilled about the dust so it has been just us since she was 9. To be honest, I started the Black Rock Scouts for all the selfish reasons. I used the kid as a negotiating tactic to go to Burning Man: I thought I would more likely get spousal approval if my wife wasn’t yoked with full time childcare. My wife had several concerns about kids at Burning Man and in our research we fell upon the Black Rock Scouts, which needed a new leader. I took on Black Rock Scouts not only to make sure we had something to do, but it was also the only way to get a ticket during the ticket crisis in 2012. So, selfishly I started the program to solely meet my desires, and I was willing to step on the backs of children to achieve them. Who would have known that the Universe would have bestowed such magic on such a small individual? Let’s just begin by saying that I never want to go to a burn again without my daughter. Now I’m working on my wife to go. That first year, we truly survived together. We had a chance to be authentic with each other, work out hard stuff that came between us along the way, and really got to play together. Burning Man is unique because it’s not just camping, it’s not just a festival, and it’s not Disneyland. For us it is the perfect combination of adversity and play that offers a very unique opportunity for connection. It literally levels the playing field where you get to be a kid with your kid. If I were to simplify what the Black Rock Scouts do, it would be that we organize playa-vocational field trips for kids and their parents where kids earn merit badges. We may go to Gate and help search cars or to Black Rock Animal Control and capture playa bunnies to be inoculated. Kids and their participating parents can be seen helping Lamp Lighters hang lamps or helping Greeters giving hugs. We are pretty organized, with a schedule of events and a staff of volunteer leaders. One might be surprised about how well we organize chaos. We simply provide opportunities for immediacy. When we schedule an event where kids and parents join us at a camp or department, we don’t completely know what will happen. The host may surprise us or the playa may have other plans for us. It is in that space of time, during that “scheduled” activity, special connections happen between the kids, the parents, and our special community. The Black Rock Scouts is fueled by love. Camps, mutant vehicle captains and crews, departments, volunteers, parents, and the BMORG all participate and sustains us. So I simply conclude by saying that I started the adventure with the Black Rock Scouts for selfish reasons and continue with even more selfish reasons. Special thanks for all who make this happen.
Posted on: Sat, 01 Nov 2014 09:10:27 +0000
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