As a young boy, I took many trips with my family to primitive campgrounds armed with nothing but a tent and frying pans. Those were truly the best times of my life.

As I reached teenage years, the camping trips stopped. My older brothers were all off to college and my mother had begun working along with my hardworking father. Vacations were nonexistent. I missed camping with my family but was determined not to give it up. So I began camping in the woods behind our house.

Now, we lived a few miles outside of the town but at that time there was quite a bit of woods behind our house. There were creeks to swim in, vines to swing on, barns to play in, and even blackberry patches to pick berries from. As you can imagine, all of this is gone now, replaced by houses.

During my teen years, my friends and I would grab a sleeping bag, (no tent) and walk until we found a good spot. We would build a huge fire, throw in some Jiffy Pop popcorn and talk very loudly about girls, school and anything else that came out. We would spray on plenty of "Off", the bug repellent, and listen to the sounds of the night, while looking at the stars.

After waiting until everyone in their right mind was asleep in the neighborhood, we would head off to walk past all the houses, enjoying the quiet and the fact that we were the only people awake. It was a liberating feeling. Eventually we would wonder over to a farm that grew watermelons. Of course we picked the biggest one we could find and headed home for the feast. After polishing off the massive melon, we would always have a watermelon spitting contest to prove our macho abilities.

With full bellies, we would then throw the remaining wood on the fire, climb into our soft, warm sleeping bags and drift off to sleep, as happy and contented as a teenager could be. I would love to go back to those days just for one night.

Camping can be a male bonding experience or it can be an unbelievable family outing. If you are hesitating, remember; Life Is Short, Go Camping!