New things are so interesting!

Because Tom is planning to throw his hat in the ring for a seasonal interp ranger position this summer, and I’m doing this NPS volunteer gig at the visitor center, we’ve both gotten exposed to the Interpretation classes provided at Eppley.org. In park parlance, interpretation isn’t translating from one language into another. It’s translating an understanding of the amazing things around us, into terms that other people can understand and appreciate – in Interpretive terms: Connecting the visitor with the resource.

I’ve been kicking this idea of “Interpretation” around in my head since I was first exposed to it back when I was still working at the Mountaineering School, but even though Interpretation is supposed to be all about answering the question, “So what?”, I had trouble putting my finger on the answer when it came to Interpretation or Interpretive Themes themselves. How was it valuable?

The Interpretive Process

One of the things I really liked from the Eppley course was this idea of highlighting emotional connections and meanings from something physical that you experience in the park.

1. You start with the thing, the tangible resource – say, El Cap.
2. Then you look for its intangible properties, some of the qualities or emotions it might provoke (adventure, friendship, exploration, overcoming challenges, fear… whatever), and then
3. try to figure out which of those are universal – something that almost everyone will connect to or have experience with.
4. After taking who your audience is into account you then,
5. Come up with a theme that includes some of those universal concepts that you figured out (something like: The challenges of climbing El Cap forges trust in yourself and your partner.)
6. Develop that theme with information about how tall El Cap is, what the challenges might be, how those climbers get up there in the first place, the skills they need, the communication and cooperation between partners etc. using various techniques to make those facts easy to relate to.

This process is more formalized, but essentially the same in principle as what I learned in my Conversion Optimization online marketing course about tailoring a message to appeal to people who are looking for a certain feeling or emotion, as well those who are looking for facts. In Interpretation, you’re selling people on the idea that this big chunk of granite is important, relevant, and meaningful. Very similar.

One Central Idea or Many Themes in Harmony?

But what if you have a 2-hour walk/talk/program/tour, or something even longer? Is that really a one-theme experience?

One ranger explained that when planning a walk or talk, you want to have a central idea that you return to again and again, something people can take home with them, something that will sink into their minds and become part of the way they see the world, long after they forget how to tell a sequoia tree from a cedar. OK, so I can see the benefit there.

On the other hand, if the Interpretive Process starts from the tangible thing, and then expands into a theme, are you limited to choosing only those tangible resources that are going to be universal across your entire tour? El Cap provokes a different subset of intangible associations than the terminal moraine. Do you have to choose only from those intangibles that overlap them both? Does the requirement of a single theme encourage Interpreters to favor the story that fits the theme over the most powerful stories?

Or, from a different perspective, if I develop a sound interpretive theme about El Cap, and then the tour bus moves on and I develop another sound interpretive theme around the eroded banks of the river, is that any less Interpretive than the single theme which would apply to both?

Memorial Day weekend is historically one of the busiest. So, as a local, my tendency is to want to get out just as everyone else is trying to get in. Unfortunately, a substantial trip is not really in the works this year, for various reasons, so I’m left with trying to figure out what to do.

Here’s an idea.

Yosemite Association has taken charge of free art classes held in the Park. Classes are given by a wide variety of artists, so each week the lessons, style, and media are fresh and new . I’ve attended one or two before, and have gotten some great tips.

This week, (May 20 – 23) the classes are being taught by Pam Pederson – Travel Sketching Pen/Watercolor – which is absolutely perfect for the kind of ‘artwork’ that I like to do. There is something truly magnificent about finished paintings, but I like the fast and loose feeling of sketching without having to go back and painstakingly, well, work. I am sure that I will have to promise my husband not to buy things – I already have reams of paper and art supplies galore, but I’m hoping that this will give me incentive to dig those things out and rub off a bit of the rust.

If you had any doubts before, I just wanted to say that this was a GREAT handstand class. There is actually a lot more to it than kicking your feet up into the air and hoping they stay there. Cher started us out with some gentle stretching, and then gave a lot of great pointers and advice. We started out slow motion and very gently, working with partners and doing our handstands against the wall. Then people built up as they felt more confident, trying handstands with a spot, handstands without a spot, and either twisting or rolling if they started to go over backwards.

I tried some somersaults on the mats, and they went OK, but I was surprised at how nervous I was about going over backwards, so I did my handstands against a wall. Perhaps not very adventurous, but I still learned a lot. You can give yourself a great advantage by learning and practicing the right body position before you even kick up into a handstand. Tucking your stomach in makes it easier than arching your back. Starting with your shoulders in front of you hands also makes getting into a balanced position easier. Handstands are great exercise! Even though you can rely on locking your elbows and letting your bones support your weight, just holding the tension that you need feels good. You can see pictures of our antics on Flickr, and if we can find another time where we can reserve the room, hopefully we’ll have a round 2. In any case, I think I’m going to spend more time playing around on my own.

Who could watch this video of people doing all kinds of crazy, fun, impossible upside down stuff without wanting to try it? Fortunately, we have a Muscle Beach veteran (the place they shot that video) right here in Yosemite Valley… and she’s teaching a class on March 11. Tom and I are both planning to go.

I found out that Tom has been wanting to learn to do handstands since just about forever, and has great stories of getting his father to walk around on his hands so that the coins would all fall out of his pockets. After 13 years together, I’m still learning stuff about him. Huh.

For my part, I think this is super cool – but definitely a few steps outside my comfort zone right now. Remember, I have a flat spot in my back that extends from L2 to S1, meaning that I tumble and roll a little like a 2×4. Do I have any business going to a handstand class?

Of course I do.

First, you never know until you try, and I’ll definitely take it slow to start. I’m getting used to my body again, making some small gains in flexibility, pushing a little, and finding out that I’m getting stronger. I’m taking on ski terrain where I fall, and it’s OK. I tried a gentle somersault on mats at the Wellness Center a few weeks ago, and while there is definitely a flat spot in my roll, my cautious experiment didn’t hurt. I tried a cartwheel in the playground in OH over Christmas, and that went just fine too. A friend told me of a woman he met who had her spine fused from C-something all the way down to S, who could lean over and put her hands flat on the ground. I bet she could do a handstand if she tried – and in any case, was not letting anyone tell her what she could and couldn’t do.

Second, even if the handstand part is a bust for me, I’m betting that there will be a lot of laughter, general goofing, and I’m planning to bring a camera… Can’t wait!