When was the last time – or indeed, the first time – that you went some place really wild with your kids? Not just off-road, but truly wild. Where there are no roads. A place that you might encounter an unfamiliar face. Perhaps the closest we’ve come to visiting a place that could be genuinely described as wild was Patagonia.
Most travelers will seek out the signposted trails, and it can be hard to escape the tourist buses that gather at the visitor centres of glaciers and national parks. It does not take long however to wander off into the vastness of the Patagonian wilderness, and find yourself entirely on your own. Standing in front of Patagonia’s magnificent glaciers, it was hard to escape the feeling that you were staring at a ticking clock. As the debate about climate change rages on, it can feel imperative to experience these landscapes before they change beyond recognition, or disappear entirely. There’s more to it than the sense of urgency. For is there a better way to impart a sense of wonder to our children than to have them immerse themselves in the wild? Whatever your views about the spiritual or moral dimension of our relation to the natural world, trips off the beaten track can be a pure marvel. Pirouette readers have seen initiatives like Project Wild Thing, which encourage families to put the screens down and witness the world first hand. Playing outdoors, getting our hands dirty can be the ideal counterpoint to the immaculate interface of technology that has come to define so much of our interaction with each other, and with the world around us. The most intrepid parents take that idea to its natural limit, and become full-on explorer families. There’s a lot to be said for Frontier Parenting, if you’ve got that pioneering spirit.
Romas Viesulas
I divide my time between home in Portugal – taking road trips to Latin America in search of investment opportunities – and London, where I often present the current affairs programme on Monocle 24 Radio. For Pirouette, I'll take my inspiration from The Swiss Family Robinson. Life with kids is certainly an adventure. It can seem easy to feel shipwrecked however on the high seas of a rapidly changing, ever more globalised world. How can we ensure our children have the tools they need to survive, even thrive?
Subscribe to Pirouette's monthly Newsletter.
You might also like
February 24, 2021
Interview: Liz Sheppard, Creative Director
Katie talks to Liz Sheppard about her work as a freelance creative director. Liz has worked for more than 10 years, across women’s, men’s and children’s brands – including…
February 6, 2021
Interview: Ana Strumpf
Interview with creator and artist Ana Strumpf Katie talks with artist and illustrator Ana Strumpf about animated gifs, doodling, how her re.cover project impacted her career. Ana discusses…
October 2, 2020
A teaser trailer for Billie Eilish’s upcoming documentary!
‘The World’s a Little Blurry’ releases February 2021. Directed by filmmaker R.J. Cutler, Billie’s long-awaited Apple TV+ documentary finally has a name and a sneak peek. Well, sort off! The World’s…
March 17, 2020
St. Patrick’s – Covid 19 Issue
It's St. Patricks Day - a day when people normally get together to celebrate the luck of the Irish and enjoy themselves... Our new reality is that this is the time to keep our distance from one…
March 11, 2020
Disney Pixar’s Onward ‘banned’ by 4 countries.
Disney Pixar's Onward 'banned by 4 Middle East countries' over gay reference According to reports Pixar's latest animation Onward has been banned by several Middle Eastern countries because of a…
February 10, 2020
Calendar KIDs Covers by Molly Magnuson for Pirouette
Cover story photography of significant calendar dates... posted during the year with an accompanying article. Keep watching..... St.Patrick's -Covid 19 Issue
December 20, 2019
SCREEN CAPTURE: Polysensorial space at Playtime Paris #27
Polysensorial space Pirouette x The Society of Scent Playtime Paris #27 Sat, 25 Jan – Mon, 27Jan 2020 The Power of Scent... be happy! For this edition of the Screen Capture exhibition Pirouette has…
June 14, 2019
MAD – The museum that’s crazy about objects. Part 1
Today I would like you to discover the new course of design collections of MAD, Musée des Arts Décoratifs in Paris. The Museum which is close to my heart, where I return to very often. You can always…
May 27, 2019
SCREEN CAPTURE – Metamorphosis ‘Child to Fashionista’ by Chris Gambrell
Live art piece by fashion illustrator Chris Gambrell Playtime Paris #26 Sat, 29 June – Mon, 1 July 2019. Parc Floral de Paris DAY 1 - Time-lapse video DAY 2 - Time-lapse video…