What’s in your backpack?
Did you know… your brain is the best backpack you’ll ever have? It is almost infinitely enormous inside, so you will never run out of room to keep learning new skills and collecting mental tools to solve problems.
Mousey loves these reminders to take only what we need in the backpack he carries with him on his back. If we take care of our tiny tools, we can do great work in our world!
Mousey keeps these items in his backpack all the time. The other tiny tools he carries might change depending on the kinds of problems he plans to solve that day.
Do you have any of these same things in your backpack?
A notebook & something to write with
A good backpacker is rarely without something to write on and write with. You can also use it to draw ideas that you don’t have words for, write down a friend’s contact information, or leave a note for someone you care about.
Backpacker tip: If you don’t have your own yet, try out one of Mousey’s notebooks. They’re free to download and print, or you can copy the ideas on your own paper if you don’t have a printer handy right now.
A small flashlight
It’s always nice to have a light handy in the darkness.
Backpacker tip: If you’re ever not sure what’s under your bed, you can use a little light to find that missing shoe before you go to sleep…
A spoon and a snack
Adventurers need a good snack on hand, and occasionally a spoon to eat it! Chopsticks are also very handy and get easier to use with practice.
Be sure to ask before taking your kitchen silverware ;)
Backpacker tip: A plastic spoon does the same job as one from your drawer of silverware in the kitchen and weighs much less!
A basic first-aid kit
If you’re going on adventures, you might need a small sticky bandage or some ointment. A tube of chapstick helps soothe hurt places too.
Mousey found a pocket first-aid kit shaped like a small backpack for his very own, but you can probably find what you need and make your own kit!
Backpacker tip: Using a plastic bag to hold it together helps keep your kit dry if you’re running in the rain.
What’s in my backpack?
These things are usually carried by the author of “Mousey’s Backpack” most of the time.
There are places where it is not appropriate to wear a backpack, like stores and restaurants (so she just brings her purse… because it’s actually just a tiny backpack…), but when she goes almost anywhere, she feels ready for the day when she has a pack with some of her favorite things… like:
A Tech Kit - this one comes in two parts. The tablet with a keyboard she uses to create websites like this one (mouseysbackpack.com) and to share her work on the World-Wide-Web (that’s what “www” stands for at the start of most websites!). The other part of this kit has USB drives to help her share things with people that may not be on the world-wide-web or to back up her work and charge her digital devices that have screens (another type of “tiny tool”). Backpacker tip: sometimes she lets her son use it to watch a “quick flick” or a show while she’s busy, but these are rare, special treats for him.
A Creative Kit - for writing, drawing, and even painting what she feels deep inside her chest (and heart) as she moves around the world and sees beautiful or troubling things. It includes ample paper as well as a map of her great state, North Carolina, United States. She got the map for free at a rest stop off the highway. Did you know you may find a similar map for your area at a rest area near you? Backpacker tip: Never underestimate the power of a napkin drawing!
A Clean-up Kit - for refreshing herself when she can’t take a shower. She has some wet wipes, a brush, quick-dry undies, and a clean shirt as well as a tiny rain jacket for her youngson.
Snacks! - because she’s a mommy now, she has learned the value of carrying a sweet pick-me-up for her son (and often needs to have one herself!)
The Fresh Kit - some good chapstick, mints, and water go a long way in helping her feel ready to speak to someone new, especially paired with the clean-up kit in a pinch.
The Power Kit - to charge the tech she uses, like the tablet or phone.
The Purse Kit - honestly, this is just a tiny backpack full of tiny tools she can take in places where it’s not appropriate to bring a big backpack… such as stores or restaurants. She keeps some money, a good pocket knife (because grown-ups can carry pocket knives), and some tissues in hers.
The GO-FORTH kit - she finds it helpful to carry a good pair of walking shoes and a handy-dandy water bottle that may have water, lemonade, or tea inside depending on how she’s feeling that day.
These items are all carried in the author’s backpack when she’s on the go.
She selected a simple black pack that can be wiped off or washed if / when it gets dirty. Her favorite part about this bag is that it weighs next to nothing without her things in it, so it’s perfect to carry items without adding extra weight.
The best part: no one can call you a “pack rat” if you keep your collections organized in “kits!” ;)
One thing she’s working on to this very day is carrying less and optimizing her tools to be more efficient. No one wants extra baggage or to lug around something heavy that isn’t useful… do you?
Happy backpacking!
Hope you can find a way to make it an interesting day