Building

Have you ever built something? If so you probably know that it is a mix of excitement and sometimes problems and roadblocks. One of the best parts of building is being able to solve those problems. The other best part is seeing the finished product. I go to a sleep away camp surrounded by woods in New Hampshire. At this particular camp we have a course for nature and survival. We were trying to get certified for camping and we had to build a shelter using a typical camping bag and whatever we could find in the woods in 40 minutes. The first thing my group did was intensive planning. We had to figure out a plan without paper and carry it out. We used sticks and drew our ideas in the dirt. We went through several ideas before picking the one that’s we felt would be the most sturdy. Next we had to gather our materials. We split up and went looking for wood in different sizes. The wood had to be of a specific density and had to be completely dry which was difficult as it had rained a couple of days before. We also used a poncho, fishing line, and electric blankets because those were some of the things that were in the camping bag. After we had gathered our materials we had to start building the shelter. We had to stack wood in the exact formation or else it wouldn’t work. There were some problems here. We realized that we didn’t have enough wood to create a shelter that could hold everyone and the shelter wasn’t strong. We had to go back and start over. Once we formed a new plan we gathered the materials and started to build our shelter again. This time we had enough wood and the shelter was stable. We used a fishing line to tie our wood together and wrapped it around the electric blanket that was on top to hold it in place. Next we laced ponchos on the floor and put in the sleeping bags. We had enough room for six of them which was good. Then we constructed a piece that would seal the opening out of a poncho and some more wood. This would ensure that the shelter stay warm enough if it were to start raining. We managed to complete the task on time and we got certified. Something that you can learn about easily while building is teamwork. Teamwork is essential if you are building something as a group. Everyone needs to be open to listening to everyone around you. You also need someone to lead the group. Leading and being bossy are two different things. The right leader will help to make sure everyone is doing something they like and that they are doing something they are good at. The leader will also have to work to help build as leading doesn’t mean watching. Building is a great experience and I would highly recommend trying it.