Article Link: http://exchangepress.com/article/into-the-wild-unknown-cultivating-trusting-relationships-through-outdoor-learning-experiences/5024708/
It was high noon on a muggy summer day, and just like any other Florida summer day, the heat and humidity were relentless. Early afternoon rain showers typically brought relief from the sweltering heat, but on this day there was not a rain cloud in sight. Our slog through waist-deep swamp water had been like hiking through a sauna. The trek had begun to take an exacting toll on all of us. Jason, our team leader, started to slow the pace and we soon came to a stop. We all seized upon the chance to enjoy a much needed break and I reveled in this opportunity to take in my surroundings.
Glancing out over the vast expanse of wetland made me realize just how far from civilization we were. The wetland was primordial; had it not been for a cell tower in the distance you could easily be fooled into thinking that you stepped thousands of years into the past. I was seeing the land as it must have looked when the first indigenous peoples arrived. That moment of awe and wonderment, however, was short-lived. Although the murky water made it impossible to see down to my boots, the noon ...