Camp has always had a special place in my heart. I grew up going to Swamp Camp (a christian camp in Georgia) and loved every second of it over the course of my life. When I found out we would be camp counselors at VCSV/ UCSA for a few days I was overjoyed. I immediately remembered all the crazy dances, deep conversation and overall sweet memories that camp meant to me.
I quickly remembered to not go in having any expectations so I prepared myself for anything and on Monday morning me and 12 other girls headed over to the campsite!
All exceptions were blown away….
We found out there would be 165 grade eights (which is basically 8th graders) coming to the camp & that in fact we would be camp counselors!!!
I put my mind into camp counselor mode and prepared my brain for anything. We went through some training and then the campers showed up! Each of the counselors were assigned a room with 16 girls. 16 middle school girls. One camp counselor. I began to worry about bedtime but decided to think about it when it came around.
After the kids settled in we played a few Ice breaker/break the awkward vibes games. They were pretty fun and people thought we were really cool because we were from America. The last game was to get into a group of 9 people you didn’t know and who were completely different from you. This is how we made small groups! My group consisted of: Kyle, Tion, Arlu, JohnJe, Moni, Levi (6 boys who I 100% spelled their names wrong), Abby, Tayla, and Kierra (3 girls!).
They were some pretty cool kids. We got to sit in our groups for a little while and just get to know each other. It was fun to get a bunch of different questions about the American lifestyle. Some that really stuck with me were: “Do you know Drake?”, “Can you wear socks in America?”, “So theres Florida, California…… and 5 more???”. I loved getting to know all about their lives and just get to spend some time with them! We had to create a group name and chant- my group went with “The Pink Panthers 21”.
We headed over to dinner after this and we BRAAIED! Braai-ing is very very popular in South Africa. Its kinda like barbecuing but with a lot more community. Everyone brings their own food to grill and then people socialize for hhouurss. Its a great way to make some new friends and eat some good food. After dinner we had some free time and I got to know some of the South African counselors that came with the camp. They had either just graduated high school or were in their Matrix year (senior year). It was fun to find people our age who we could connect with!! After a bit of free time we went into a big hall for bible study where we talked about the struggles of high school. The overall theme for the week was just preparing the kids for high school and everything that comes with it.
Once the big lesson was over, we broke up into our small groups so the kids could ask any questions they had about high school or talk about things they were scared about. Going into it, I was a little nervous because I wasn’t sure if these kids were gonna open up to someone they only met a few hours ago. So I talked first and told them all about my high school experience. I talked about how big comparison was for me in high school, how I was a big people pleaser that made most of my choices based on what other people thought of me & not who I actually was.I talked about how high school is a time to find who you are, to discover things you like & don’t like. I talked about how important friendships are & how once you find good friends to not lose them over something dumb. I talked about some of the things I struggled with like putting boys before myself or parties or hanging out with people who were cool & didn’t actually care about me.
Then they talked about what they were scared of.
They talked about how they were scared to lose friends & feel left out. About how mean & cruel people were in grade school & how they don’t want to be like that. About how excited they were to play new sports and join new organizations. They talked about relationships and parties and everything that high school consists of. It was so cool to see 14 year olds be vulnerable and open about things that scared them. Especially around fellow class mates. I can’t imagine sitting down in eighth grade and talking about that stuff. I was truly really amazed. During the race I’ve definitely struggled with being bold- and these kids defined it for me.
After bible study/ talktalktime it was time for bed. Quick remember: there are sixteen 14 year old girls + me in this room & lights out was at eleven. I also didn’t want to be THAT counselor since they only had 2 nights at this camp. So around 11 I shut the lights off & prayed for the best. It actually went really well. My girls were super respectful & talked really quietly.
Tuesday began with an early morning. The girls in my room woke up around 5 am.
We headed down to the beach for a bible study with our small groups. We sat down on the beach, and turned to Daniel 6, a classic story we all know, Daniel in the Lions Den. As we read through the story, i though about what it would be like to sit in a lions den.
To be in an enclosed space with a Lion.
I would have to beg God to save me because lions are scary & there are not many people out there who survive the night in a den with a LION! & thats exactly what Daniel did. & God heard his cry and saved him. Who am I to think that God can’t help me through ANY situation. We all have our lions. We all have things that seem to big to be saved from. But whats too big for the creator of the universe?!? Even though sometimes we may be in situations where things look a little dark or low- I know my Lord is faithful and takes me out of the deepest lions dens. Dens that I never think ill be able to heal from because I got a bit scratched up in the den. But were all still here, standing strong and trusting in what He has for us.
Being able to get to talk to my kids about this opened my eyes and changed my perspective on a story I haven’t read since childhood.
After bible study we did the MONKEY. I was introduced to the monkey in South Africa, but all these kids were very familiar with it. Basically its a dance to wake the kids up in the mornings or after doing something boring. It is C R A Z Y. The entire time I can’t help but laugh because there are 200+ people jumping and dancing around like a monkey. If you wanna watch it on youtube just look up the monkey dance and you will get a good laugh. We did it at least 4 times a day & ever single time I would laugh a little more.
Once we monkeyed our hearts out, we ate some breakfast and played a bunch of different games like charades and two truths and a lie (a classic). Then we ate some lunch and headed out on a HUGE adventure. “Local Challenge” is a game where your small group goes out into the town and does a bunch of different stuff like thank the life guards, help someone in need, or go to the billabong factory and try on a outfit. There were a total of about 11 things we had to do & it truly was a good time. My favorite memory from that day was when my kids were looking for someone in need and stumbled upon a homeless man outside of the grocery store. In the grocery store, the man at checkout gave all of us free lollipops because they bought so many snacks for their last night. When we walked outside, two of my kids gave him their lollipop without me even saying anything. Then, one of my kids gave him the rest of his money and we got the chance to pray for him. Its bittersweet moments like this that you remember on the race and that stick with you throughout everyday life. After some ice cream, we headed back to camp for dinner and performed our chants and skits. It was truly a funny time.
The next day it was raining alllll day so waking up was pretty hard. Especially waking up a bunch of girls for breakfast who stayed up prettttttty late. Once breakfast was over, we said some sad good byes and all the campers and new friends left.
Camp is a crazy place. I may never understand how it can make complete strangers feel like close friends/family in such a short period of time. Im so thankful and grateful for the opportunity I had to hang out with these kids for a few day. They impacted me in so many ways and reminded me that no matter how old you are, life comes with its own struggles and we need only to trust in the author of our life.
LIFE UPDATE:
For the past month we have been working at Global Leadership Academy (google it its really amazing!!) doing construction on the school and on the missions house. On our first day at GLA we met our amazing cook Wendi who holds the missions house very close to her heart. A few years ago there was a World Race squad that came to work at GLA, on that squad there was a girl named Rebecca who fell in love with Wendi’s son, Austin. After Rebecca got home from the race, Austin went to America and proposed. Since his visa was expiring and there wedding was soon they got married so Austin could stay in America. The night before their wedding with family & friends, Austin and Rebecca passed away in a car accident. The missions house was built in remembrance of them. So many people have spent so much time building this house & it means so much to the Global community. As the first people to stay in this house ever, we felt very unworthy and knew we had to take good care of it and still do to this day.
Construction was so much fun, I learned how to put a floor down, varnish & paint almost anything, lay cement!, and so much more. The more construction we did, the more we could see results which was really cool to see all our hard work everyday. We also got to get really close to all the construction workers and people we saw everyday. The people who work at Global are incredible and are such amazing examples for each of us. After doing construction for about 3 weeks we had DEBRIEF! Debrief was in Port Elizabeth, South Africa- which is about 45 minutes away from us. We reunited with our entire squad after being apart for the first time in awhile which was super fun. Debrief is a time to rest and process the World Race & thats exactly what I did! I spent a lot of time resting and thinking about the last 4 1/2 months. Sometimes I have to remind myself that I live in South Africa & every single time it blows my mind. At debrief, I got to see the new Mary Poppins movie, go to a snake park where I got kissed by a seal!!, and spend lots of time talking to friends and reconnecting with family. My team is doing really good and is closer than ever so far in South Africa. Im thankful for them everyday and can’t imagine doing this with anyone else!
Make today count, HELEN <3
