Deepening connection to nature through stories

By Creston Kids Outside Society

What does storytelling sound like in your family? If your children are anything like mine, they probably greatly enjoy storybooks. They might also cherish stories from their grandparents’ childhood, tales of the ‘olden days’ or ‘once upon a time’ imaginary tales pulled out of a hat at bedtime.

I moved to Creston from Ontario and married into a family whose local history goes back several generations. My children now gobble up stories about their father and grandfather’s time growing up in the woods, creeks and mountainsides of the Creston Valley. There are stories about adventures and mishaps while camping, fishing and hunting, stories about great foraging spots and about the ‘time before Kootenay pass.’ There are stories about growing up farming and taking jobs in fields and orchards. And of course, one is never enough. Whether you are a long time Crestonite or came here from somewhere else, you likely have your own stories to tell about your connection to the land where you grew up.

In the field of nature education, the power and magic of storytelling is well known. Sitting together around a campfire or under a canopy of trees, children are usually enthralled to hear real stories full of adventure and wild weather, or spontaneous spur-of-the-moment ones featuring treasure hunts and animal encounters. Stories help children make sense of their world, and when they involve interesting characters and familiar places, landforms, plants and animals, they can deepen their sense of connection to the place where they are growing up. During Creston Kids Outside programs, we sometimes surreptitiously sneak Douglas Fir cones into our pockets, and when the moment seems right, tell the legend of the Mouse and the Douglas Fir Cone. By the time the story is over, every awestruck child gets a chance to see the ‘mice’ inside the cones with their tails sticking out—and will hopefully always remember how to identify a Douglas Fir cone!

So, next time you have children nearby, try out the age-old question—‘Who wants to hear a story?’ You probably have stories to pass on about climbing apple trees as a kid or getting lost on Mount Thompson. Maybe you evaded a bear while fishing in Kidd Creek, or found gold in the Goat River. Or maybe your stories involve less adventure and more quiet peacefulness, like having a favourite tree in your backyard where you climbed and watched clouds pass over the Skimmerhorns. If you want to try ‘pulling one out of a hat’ at bedtime, maybe the Cedar tree in your backyard could become a magical kingdom for raccoons, bears and chickadees. The animals might find a treasure map that leads them North on a quest up Goat Mountain, West to the shores of Kootenay Lake, up to the heights of Topaz Mountain and back in time before there were dykes on the Kootenay River. Nature education at it’s finest and most fun!