Don’t let the title deceive you, I did have fun! But there was also a lot of work put in too!
Camp. What do you think of when you hear that word? Summer camp of your childhood? Camping in the woods? Cabins with 20 bunk beds and 40 screaming girls?
Whatever you think of, this was just a little different than what I was thinking of.
This was training camp. I knew as much before I left but didn’t really know what to expect. We all get there, carrying our packs on our backs and a box of t-shirts between two of us. We get to check in and I am immediately overwhelmed by the group of people standing on the back porch we’re standing on. We’re let inside to check in two at a time from each squad, so it takes a little while to get in. When we finish, we’re exiting with a sandwich and a name tag, feeling excited for the week to come but also anxious of what may come in the week. One of our squad leaders, Mark, led us to camp and we all set up our tents. There weren’t very many people there yet and we decided to go around and talk to the people we had been talking to for months in a group message but never had gotten to actually meet. After everyone arrived, we were all talking to each other and felt accomplished for putting our tents together with minimal help.
That night we went to worship and as we started praising, the lead singer asked us to turn around and say hey to somebody we hadn’t yet. I started looking around, and a woman came up to me and asked if she could pray over me. I was startled but agreed, and she started to pray. She prayed over all of the reasons I didn’t think I should have been there. Leaving my family, funds, and worry over who I was going to be living with for the next nine months. She prayed over every. single. thing. that I had been worrying about for months on end. I was blown away.
As the week continued, we did team training exercises and we found out who we worked well with and who we didn’t. These went from Friday to Tuesday and Wednesday we found out who our teams were. Wednesday was our ‘fun’ day where we got to leave camp and hang out with our team for awhile. We had a really good time hanging out and getting to know each other better.
We also had designated nights throughout the week. One was camping out where we had to cook our own food and sleep in an eno or under a tarp. Another was where half of us had our stuff “lost” by the airport and had to share with others for a day. My favorite one was airport night. We spent that night in the air conditioning with airport noises playing through the speakers, sleeping on the cold concrete. But my favorite thing was that we played card games for hours. When we finally decided to head to bed, it wasn’t too late (probably like 10:30) but it felt like 4am. When I woke, I was confused as to how the knot in my shoulder had gotten so tight and what time it was. As I sat up, I remembered where I was and what I was there for.
The last day we woke up was the final full day at training camp. The last day of camp is all about one thing: Squad Wars. Which in my opinion is a waste of time and I would have MUCH preferred to have just been able to go home, but sadly that was not the case. While we had part of our team competing for the title “Squad Wars Champions”, the rest who were not competing went down to the lake. While sitting on a rock talking with a friend, there was a couple of people who decided to wade out into the water a bit. As they go a little further out with each step, one girl falls in with a *splash* as we all start laughing with her. Pretty soon the five people who were hanging out on the beach are in the water splashing everyone and having fun. Pretty soon, our entire squad is in the water cooling off and having fun. Once we get out, it’s time to head to dinner. As soon as we finish eating, it’s time to head back to camp. After we get back, we start preparing for packing up in the morning. We finally head home the next day 10AM with a short ride home and a nice warm shower.
