There's No Such Thing As Bad Weather: A Scandinavian Mom's Secrets for Raising Healthy, Resilient, and Confident Kids (from Friluftsliv to Hygge)

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To audience members who were arriving late) You haven't missed a thing, I was just killing time 'til you got here. I continued on my way towards Hexham, very slowly, at what I call hymn-speed. I have not mentioned that I sing as I go along. I always do. Seldom loudly, more often in a murmur. I recognise few limits in my repertoire; I can treat myself to anything. I bellow in opera, warble in ballad. My choice on any particular occasion is governed by my speed, and governs my speed; my feet march in tempo. My favourite uphill song is "Volga Boatman," which suits my movements admirably: I find I can grind out a note with every step, and each verse earns a pause, a brief halt. For slow travel, or when I am tired, hymns are best; not the noisy modern tunes, but the old ones, the softer melodies: "Breathe on me, breath of God." "Jesus, Lover of my Soul." "When I survey the Wondrous Cross." "Nearer, my God, to Thee." "Lead, Kindly Light." and best of all, "Abide with me'" old familiar tunes which can never lapse and be forgotten; quiet tunes and comforting words learnt in childhood, and later loved. . . . Last of all are the rousing marching songs, which usually end the day, unless I am very weary, when my choice is invariably "Lead, Kindly Light.” InJanuary 2023myself and Beverley who I work with every day in the nursery got to travel to Bergen and then onto Floro (the most western town in Norway) where we werebasedto spend 5 days with all our partners visiting Eikefjord Kindergarten or as it is known in Norwegian, a Barnehage.

In Russia it is a quite common expression (it sounds almost the same, just without the second part). What about the English speaking countries? Washington Post 15 Feb. D1 ‘There's no such thing as bad weather, only bad clothes,’ said Peterson. ‘You Ibsen may have been able to clear his mind while out walking in the countryside but the aspect of friluftsliv that champions feeling “remote” feels less relevant in a region made up of the most digitally advanced economies in Europe. Thanks in large part to the screen-heavy nature of today’s world, studies reveal both children and adults are spending less time connected to nature. This, of course, despite numerous reports that show just how key exposure to the outdoors is when it comes to our physical and mental health. In her book, There’s No Such Thing as Bad Weather, Swedish-American journalist, blogger, and mother of two, Linda Åkeson McGurk explores whether the nature-centric parenting philosophy of her native Scandinavia holds the key to healthier, happier lives for her children. Below, we caught up with the author (whose children are now 9 and 12) to hear about her own upbringing as well as how best to get kids outdoors…even in the dead of winter.As long as I can remember, my girls have climbed trees. Skinny trees, big trees, crooked trees, straight trees, old trees, young trees, pine trees, deciduous trees… They’ve climbed trees in snow suits in the winter and barefoot in the summer. On more than one occasion, they’ve climbed trees wearing... If you have time to watch Game of Thrones on Netflix, you also have time to be outdoors. It’s a matter of making choices,” she argues. “And being able to see something green really adds value to everyday life”.

With its sensible rules on wild camping, Scotland has to be the UK’s premier winter camping location, but it’s also its most demanding. One grizzled old-timer I met on a winter walk in Glen Affric near Loch Ness swore that his solution to sleeping out on snow and ice was to insert a west highland terrier down his sleeping bag. While this may appeal to some, I prefer the advice of Sara Lundy, a brilliant guide I hiked with in Idaho’s Sawtooth mountains. Life is a waste of time. Time is a waste of life. Get wasted all the time and you'll have the time of your life. For a preschooler the next few weeks are not about sitting up at a tablelearning letter, shapes or numbers from books or tracingletters etc. In mysetting alllearning is done through play, at no point do we sit thechildren down and say 'Now we are going to learn shapes etc.' and that isn't how it should bedone at home either. Recently, I turned 60... and even more recently, I turned 62. That was a bastard, I don't even remember the 61.

When it comes to relaxation he says meditation, silent retreats and even psychedelic drugs are, within the start-up scene at least, becoming popular alternatives to more traditional outdoor pastimes.

A few years ago, I got talking to a prominent researcher at the University of Illinois Champaign-Urbana about the Scandinavian attitude to outdoor play and nature connection. I told her about our commitment to dressing kids for the weather and getting them outside every day, as well as our obsession... Morning is the best part of the day for walking. The air is freshest then, the earth sweetest. The flowers preen themselves after their bath of dew, and stand erect with rare self-assurance, proud of their bright clean colours. The birds are happiest in the morning, and most lively then. They dart across the path before you, wheel and soar above the trees, swoop unerringly to their nests. They chatter and chirrup and sing in unending chorus, blithely contented and gay, and so very very glad to be alive.”You have this interesting sort-of counter-culture developing. So I think maybe for us, our generation – in the big cities at least – might find other ways of achieving something similar to friluftsliv, maybe more with a spiritual note.” However, others argue that younger Scandinavians are simply discovering new methods to switch off and recoup energy, albeit on a more short-term basis. But Angeliqa Mejstedt insists that the success of her blog, and the more than 100 hikes she’s organised in 23 locations over the past year, are a sign that friluftsliv continues to inspire young Scandinavians and that the concept has found new ways to thrive in a more digital world. Give me a map to look at, and I am content. Give me a map of country I know, and I am comforted: I live my travels over again; step by step, I recall the journeys I have made; half-forgotten incidents spring vividly to mind, and again I can suffer and rejoice at experiences which are once more made very real. Old maps are old friends, understood only by the man with whom they have traveled the miles.” Does your organization need a speaker who can an engage an audience on the topic of outdoor play and connecting children and adults with nature? I’m a twice published author with a wealth of knowledge and speaking experience from a range of workshops, conferences and community events. Most of my presentations are done remotely via video link, but I do sometimes travel for bigger events.