Youtopia, the San Diego regional Burning Man event.
Dylan and I went to Youtopia, the San Diego regional Burning Man event, in 2023. He was nine. I handed out about 24 bottles from my collection — about half of what I had, and I reminded myself to stop collecting more.
Dylan did sword fighting at Danger Camp. He swam in the pool. He danced in front of the video screen. He pulled people onto the dance floor. He bounced on a couch.
Regional events are smaller than the main burn and more manageable for a nine-year-old. The principles are the same: radical self-expression, radical inclusion, leave no trace. The scale is different enough that it doesn’t require the same level of planning and infrastructure.
Dylan had a great time.
I was mostly monitoring, occasionally engaged, largely redundant.
Burning Man has been part of my life since 1997. This was the first time I went with someone who might someday go on their own.