Boys Becoming Their Best Selves
WITH Josh Holland, Camp Cobbossee
This podcast is sponsored by SCOPE, an amazing organization that helps to send children from financially disadvantaged families to summer camp. You can learn more about SCOPE online and through social media @supportscope.
Have you ever known someone who makes you calm simply being in their presence? Josh Holland is just such a person. He’s a deep thinker, incredibly well-read, and an incredibly good communicator. As you can imagine, he’s also a heck of a camp director and leader of young men.
Josh is the director of Camp Cobbossee, a boys camp in Maine that lists ‘sports and adventure’ as the ‘hook’ for families. What Josh and his team are really doing at Cobbo is helping families build their boys into good men - those who are courageous, thoughtful, wise, and strong. Our world could use more men like Josh and those he helps develop.
As you can imagine, we spend our time around the campfire discussing how to bring our the best in our boys. We touch on the changing landscape of ‘manhood’, what mass culture seems to want, and how to connect our boys to something that truly matters. I hope you’ll enjoy this campfire conversation with Josh!
GREAT RESOURCES FOR HELPING OUR Boys BECOME THEIR BEST SELVES
Josh spoke of two books in particular: War and Tribe by Sebastian Junger. The former is about a platoon stationed at the far edge of Afghanistan while the later works through the questions raised by the former. Having read both, I found Tribe to be the more useful in working with my own boys though both are important.
Outward Bounds founder, Kurt Hahn, is someone you should definitely get to know.
Dr. Michael Gurian has written a number of useful books for understanding boys and helping them thrive: Saving our Sons and the Purpose of Boys are two great ones.
Dr. Michael Thompson has, too! Raising Cain is one of the first books I read about boys and still ranks as on of the best. It’s A Boy is a great resource for all parents of boys.
One last thing. I’m a big believer in the growth of boys being a pathway to manhood that they can choose to take… or not; supported along the journey… or not. Jeffery Marx wrote a wonderful book about this called Seasons of Life.