The Forward

October 22, 2018 | by Darla | 2 Minute Read

Every year at our son’s school, they go away on a 3-day retreat called The Forward. The school staff loads all the kids on a bus and takes them somewhere 1-3 hours outside of town to a campsite, where they will live and bond for 3 days sans parents.

This was kind of fun for our son the first year. A little less fun the next year. We are now four years into The Forward, and my son is BEGGING us to let him stay home.

I am wavering on this. The Forward is next week, and a decision has to be made pretty quick on whether to make him go or let him slide. On one hand, I understand perfectly well why he would not want to go on a 3-day trip with his school to just be at school away from home. It’s not like a trip to an amusement park or a waterpark or something. I wouldn’t have necessarily wanted to be taken away from my home and my nice comfy bed for 3 nights to just hang with the kids from school day and night, either. The REAL crusher is that no electronics are allowed. That is quite the bummer for these kids.

On the other hand, I am not my child, and while I should and do empathize with him, it’s also not my job to shield him from every thing that is not ideal or is slightly unpleasant. Sure he won’t have any privacy or the comfiest bed for a couple of days, but at least that’s a temporary situation, and not a day-to-day reality like for some people. And while the Fortnite withdrawal WILL be painful, it won’t be the worst thing to give his brain an opportunity to rewire a bit.

I asked our older son, who went to the same school and also on these trips, what his assessment of it was, to see if he could give me info to help with this decision. He said, “Yeah, no one really liked the Forwards, but it WAS a bonding experience”. Hmmm, I thought. Then he went on, “Even if it was bonding over how miserable you were”.

So, no real help THERE.

In the event my kid does stay home, I am tasked with finding activities to keep him moving and thinking and off of Fortnite for 3 days straight. I am a bit daunted at the prospect.