Outdoor Skills + Advice: Renaming "The Gap Year"

By Contributing Writer Aparna Rajagopal-Durbin, faculty member and Diversity & Inclusion Manager at the National Outdoor Leadership School (NOLS) ; photograph courtesy Deborah Sussex/NOLS

So far my blog posts have kept to more practical advice for outdoor enthusiasts, but I figured every once in a while I would be entitled to a soapbox. See, I have a bone or few to pick with “The Gap Year.” By this, I mean what we’ve chosen to call the time students spend traveling, volunteering, adventuring, and playing between their primary schooling and higher education.

To me, “gap” evokes images of nothingness, emptiness, space in between substance. But a Gap Year is anything but empty! My Gap Years have been the most fulfilling experiences in my life. It’s a plain misnomer. Folks in the U.K. have got it right: They call this experience “The Sandwich Year.” And for good reason, too. Think of all the meaty goodness that can fill this time in between conventional academic pursuits! Your wallet may not be bottomless, but finances aside, you can do anything: Work for a nonprofit aid organization in Africa; teach English in Southeast Asia; go to Antarctica to research glaciers; pick fruit through Europe; be a nanny . . . in the Riviera; or go on a semester or yearlong backcountry expedition with NOLS almost anywhere in the world. Maybe by the time my four-year-old is in college, he can go to Mars! No “gappiness.” More like an all-you-can-eat sandwich buffet.

And here’s another problem I have with the Gap Year. Does it have to be between high school and college? What about that year you decide to study the Mount Kilimanjaro glaciers to complement your grad school thesis in climatology? What about that yearlong hiatus from your stressful career as a lawyer in your 30s when you’re just plain done with the rat race? How about the year spent with your family living out of your van, climbing and camping across the U.S.? What about the year spent in your 50s going to canoe school to learn how to build boats? What about the year of training for triathlons in your 60s so you can win first place in your age category in every race? I would argue, nay, I contend—that anyone can take a Gap Year (or two or three) any time in their lives.

Another bone to pick with the Gap Year. It might be a “gap” from scholastic pursuits, but by no means is it a “gap” from learning. With adventure comes an education you cannot receive within the four walls of a traditional classroom. Traveling alone in northern India, you learn how to catch a train without getting squeezed out by the masses, how to ask for directions in Hindi, what not to eat on the streets, and how to use the (infamous) Indian toilets. Backpacking with all your belongings on your back, you learn about simplicity, self-reliance, and responsibility. Kicking steps along a glacier in the Wind Rivers as part of a rope team, you feel empowered, like you can take on any terrain in the world. A broken down bus in the middle of rural South America can make you resourceful and teach patience. Helping rural women in Bangladesh build sustainable local enterprises teaches you creativity—thinking out of the box. And when your plans to ski the peaks of Kyrgyzstan get stymied by political instability, you learn to deal with uncertainty, go with the flow, and roll with the punches.

My last issue with the Gap Year is the whole perspective on life that this term connotes. Imagine this: a photo of life as a series of “important” touchstone events: school, college, your first job, your wedding, the birth of your kids, your retirement, and the various “gaps” in between filled with travel, adventure, and epic pursuits. The Gap Year-ists live their lives with this photo on their refrigerators. I want you to take that photo and throw it in the garbage. Now, take the negative of that photo (yes, it’s not a digital camera) and stick it on your fridge. In that negative, your life is one big adventure, and the gaps are filled with more mundane pursuits like high school, college, etcetera. In this negative, “Gap Year” has no meaning.

Life is just a big multi-deckered sandwich. Enjoy the buffet. Click here for more on spending your “Gap Year” with NOLS. Maybe it’ll turn into your life!

Comments

[Account Deleted]

NBA,MLB,NFL,NHL Hats:http://fashion-saler.com/

[Cheap UGGs]

A nearly century-old hunting Cheap UGGs is catching on with a younger generation that sees the utilitarian footwear as hip.L.L Bean's familiar duck UGG Bailey Button with leather uppers and rubber soles - designed for slogging through mud and snow - has become something of a statement owing to its newfound popularity on campuses, UGG Amberlee the company said. Another reason is new styles, UGG Tularosa including something Leon Leonwood Bean surely never envisioned in 1912: bright blue and pink leather, new for spring.Part of the success of the UGG Kensington is its versatility, in barnyards or in cities, in snow or rain.Defying a trend toward offshore production,UGG Bailey Button Triplet the outdoors retailer is adding 125 full-time employees to its Maine manufacturing operation to keep pace with orders.
The well-known UGG Classic Short Sparkles appears to be benefiting from a retro trend, whether it's penny loafers or Gap's 1969 series blue jeans, said Candace Corlett, UGG Caspia president of WSL Strategic Retail in New York.Another factor that could be helping Bean: There's been little that's new and exciting in footwear in recent years beyond UGG Montclair boots and Crocs, said Alexander Geyman, editor of Focus on Fashion Retail. Trendy UGG Classic Cardy boots and the Timberland brand outstrip Bean's in sales, he said.
The duck UGG Classic Short carry the "Made in the USA" label, something that's hard to find these days in footwear. Nationwide, the number of shoe-manufacturing jobs dropped from more than 200,000 in the 1970s to 12,500 this year, UGG Fox Fur according to the U.S. Labor Department. In Maine, shoe-manufacturing jobs peaked at more than 25,000 in the 1960s, UGG Delaine and last year there were 1,300 jobs, according to the Maine Department of LaborWell-known Maine brands like G.H. Bass, Cole Haan, UGG Knightsbridge Sebago and Dexter are now made abroad. But L.L. Bean has resisted the notion of making its Bean UGG Plumdale.As the story goes, L.L. Bean created the hunting UGG Classic Tall for himself after his feet got wet and cold on a hunting trip, and it was not an instant success. Ninety of the first 100 pairs sold in 1912 were returned after the leather separated; Bean had a satisfaction guarantee, UGG Annabelle so he returned customers' money.These days, UGG Retro Cargo the original L.L. Bean Hunting Shoe is available unlined or with various linings, UGG Finnegan including Gore-Tex, Thinsulate and shearling. There are plenty of other variations, including quilted, canvas and plaid, UGG Sheepskin Cuff and even bright blue and pink leather. There are low-cut versions as well.All of them are still made by hand. The rubber soles are made by L.L. Bean workers in Lewiston, UGG Mayfaire and they're sewn to the leather uppers at an L.L. Bean plant in Brunswick.All told, there are 320 workers at L.L. Bean's factory in Brunswick, making UGG Highkoo, dog beds, canvas totes and other products.Each Gore-Tex liner is inflated and dunked in a tank to make sure it's watertight before being dried and put in the UGG Roslynn.

[wedding520]

75人以上から選択しては控えめヴィータベラで結婚式ドレス
をカット。このウェブサイトは、あなたのスタイルに合わせてウエディングドレス
を見つけることができることを保証する、あなたのスタイル（袖の長さ、ラップ、チュール）と価格でソートして検索することができます。彼らはまた、寺院のdresssより現代的であるが、かなり保守的な受信カラードレス 格安
の大規模な選択をしている。人の上ベール
をしようとする彼らのショールームを訪問。

[UGGs Cheap]

This site is very interesting and also great. I'm glad to find out this ste immediately. It's very informative.

[wedding520]

同社は結婚式ドレス
スタイルの完全な範囲を作ることがある一方で、スタイリングは、他のファッションハウスよりも控えめです。 ？それはdoesnのtは遠く、そこから、彼らは平凡だという意味。ガウンはそれらに古典的な外観も現代を与えるウエディングドレス
デザインのタッチで強化された優雅さが特徴です。

[moncler vests]

when more. Even at one particular:30 PM, the streets had been already crowded together with households and visitors, along with what appeared to become an even bigger number associated with police. The idea also seemed like virtually everybody was donning a new social gathering hat, or a new set associated with &quot2011" fake eyeglasses, or some other sort involving celebratory halloween costume or adornment.

[UGG Classic Mini]

What a beautiful scenery

[Home Security Fort Worth]

Thank you and looking for more posts. I am really satisfied with this posting that you have given us. This is really a stupendous work done by you.
'

[android developer]

I am very much pleased with the contents you have mentioned.I wanted to thank you for this great article. I enjoyed every little bit part of it and I will be waiting for the new updates.Thanks. I am very much impressed from your post.It has amazing information.I learned lot of new things which explores my knowledge in various developments.So i must appreciate your efforts on posting these information.

[wedding]

色を抑えたメイクで花嫁自身の美しさをアピールするタキシードが重要です！プロのヘア＆メイクさんにお願いするエンパイアドレス格安、必ず自分のイメージ写真をお持ちください！言葉で説明しても、ウェディングベール通販の人の受信方法しようとまつげ風邪??変わってしまう。花嫁の幸福感をアピールだ！アイメイクはアンダーにもつけまつげをしたほうがいいと思うが、色はブラウン系。卒業生が恩師に感謝するウエディングベール感謝の時間、公式的な場所といえます。

[101directions]

I enjoyed reading this blog. I love adventure and I rate this blog as excellent.

Kindly visit us for more travel reviews
http://www.101directions.com/

[Customs Jerseys]

http://www.customsjerseys.com custom jerseys

[price less shop]

The good old folks in the UK call it a Gap year i'm afraid. Sandwich year is only used when taken as part of a university course as a placement. Its also more recently known as the Gap Yah for the rich. Nice to see we have similar institutions though ours is the Centre for learning outside the classroom CLOTC.

[canada goose canada]

Your blog is a great one. What really impresses me is that you are correctly mentioned that there are thousands of tools that are available to create a website or launch one but what matters is that you choose the right one, the one that gives you all that is actually needed.

[cheap canada goose]

Your blog is a great one. What really impresses me is that you are correctly mentioned that there are thousands of tools that are available to create a website or launch one but what matters is that you choose the right one, the one that gives you all that is actually needed.

[James Chetwode]

The good old folks in the UK call it a Gap year i'm afraid. Sandwich year is only used when taken as part of a university course as a placement. Its also more recently known as the Gap Yah for the rich. Nice to see we have similar institutions though ours is the Centre for learning outside the classroom CLOTC.

[Jessica]

Thanks for sharing the useful tips and guide, I think it is useful to us..