I grew up in a family with loving and caring parents, with four children who honored and devoted their time and loyalty to the family. I grew up having a strong bond with my family. True, my brother and sisters would sometimes have arguments and disagreements but they were just that, arguments and disagreements, and we would always settle things before the day was through.

Every summer my family and I would go on a camping trip. Other families would to go to Europe to see the continent cross country, others to Hawaii and sun bathe on the beach, others yet go to Aspen and go skiing, but my family would go on camping trips. We spend our time hiking, fishing, enjoying nature, go river rafting, roasting hot dogs and marshmallows, talking, sharing and bonding with one another. It is sort of a family tradition.

Now that we have grown and have families of our own we still get together and find time to go on a family camping trip. We have grown in number and going on camping trips is not as simple as it used to be. Before, we only had to bring the basic necessities like a torch stove for cooling, lanterns and flashlights, tents and sleeping bags.

Now, camping is like spending a couple of nights away from home but with all the amenities of home. Aside from the basic necessities, we now also have computers to keep tabs on what’s happening in the city, cell phones to keep in touch with other people, MP3s for music and although we don’t bring along a glass door refrigerator, we do bring a 12v refrigerator. Going camping is not as primitive as it used to be, but we still have fun. Family camping trips may not happen as often as we want it to, but we make sure that we do get together and go on trips whenever we can. It is still a great way to connect with family.