I love the Christmas season. I can't even explain my own excitement - family, decorations, giving gifts, serving those who are less fortunate, a break from school, a time to reflect on the year, a feeling of love, community, and generosity, and most importantly, a time to celebrate the birth of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.
In the kindergarten class that I work with, we were making little Christmas tree crafts and I got to be in charge of the art table. As the kids were working, they got to talking about how excited they were for Christmas. One of the little boys was expressing his enthusiasm for Christmas celebrations, but then he got this great light in his eyes and said, "But when Jesus comes [meaning the Second Coming of Christ] it will be even more celebrater!" Poor grammar perhaps, but a wonderful message. The joy and hopefulness that we feel at this time of year is only a glimpse of that which we will feel when Jesus Christ comes to the earth again.
Saturday, December 6, 2008
Thursday, December 4, 2008
Comic Relief
For your reading enjoyment and end-of-semester stress relief, here's some more great stories from work. I love working with kids.
Squishy
A month or so ago the smartest kid in the second grade came up to me at recess and informed me that there was something squishy in the grass. Seeing that he was obviously quite concerned about this, I asked him to show me what it was. My first thought was that it would be some small maimed rodent and I was steeling myself for something gruesome. As we approached the spot, he began examining the ground very carefully. When at last he pointed to the ground I came over to investigate more closely. "Nathan*," I said, "that's dog poop. Don't step in it." Keep in mind that this literally is the smartest kid in the second grade.
Yeah
I was chastised by a third grader for saying "yeah" because apparently it is the lazy way of saying "yes."
Pictures
I recently got an assignment at school with a kindergarten class. I help a boy who comes from a rough background learn what is appropriate behavior for school and basically just be his friend. I love it. Anyway, he was drawing a picture the other day and, noticing that it looked a lot like a picture he'd drawn of himself the day before (you know, big circle for a head with arms and legs that come directly out of the head) I asked if he was drawing a picture of himself. "No," he replied, "that's a dinosaur." Of course, silly me.
Rain
As I was "lifeguarding" (for some reason, the kids on the playground call me 'lifeguard') at recess one day, it started to sprinkle. One of my second-graders came up to me and told me that when it rains, it means that Jesus is crying. I asked her why she thought that He was crying. She said that it was probably because He was sad because people smoke.
Big Belly
I was reading a Sponge Bob book to one of the kindergarteners in the after-school program. In the story, Sponge Bob eats a lot of food and gets sick, but in the picture his belly also gets rather large. In my attempts to help this boy enjoy the story and improve his comprehension, I was trying to help him examine the pictures in the book. "Why does Sponge Bob have a big belly in this picture?" I asked. He immediately yelled out, "because he's going to have a baby!"
*as always, the names of the students have been changed.
Squishy
A month or so ago the smartest kid in the second grade came up to me at recess and informed me that there was something squishy in the grass. Seeing that he was obviously quite concerned about this, I asked him to show me what it was. My first thought was that it would be some small maimed rodent and I was steeling myself for something gruesome. As we approached the spot, he began examining the ground very carefully. When at last he pointed to the ground I came over to investigate more closely. "Nathan*," I said, "that's dog poop. Don't step in it." Keep in mind that this literally is the smartest kid in the second grade.
Yeah
I was chastised by a third grader for saying "yeah" because apparently it is the lazy way of saying "yes."
Pictures
I recently got an assignment at school with a kindergarten class. I help a boy who comes from a rough background learn what is appropriate behavior for school and basically just be his friend. I love it. Anyway, he was drawing a picture the other day and, noticing that it looked a lot like a picture he'd drawn of himself the day before (you know, big circle for a head with arms and legs that come directly out of the head) I asked if he was drawing a picture of himself. "No," he replied, "that's a dinosaur." Of course, silly me.
Rain
As I was "lifeguarding" (for some reason, the kids on the playground call me 'lifeguard') at recess one day, it started to sprinkle. One of my second-graders came up to me and told me that when it rains, it means that Jesus is crying. I asked her why she thought that He was crying. She said that it was probably because He was sad because people smoke.
Big Belly
I was reading a Sponge Bob book to one of the kindergarteners in the after-school program. In the story, Sponge Bob eats a lot of food and gets sick, but in the picture his belly also gets rather large. In my attempts to help this boy enjoy the story and improve his comprehension, I was trying to help him examine the pictures in the book. "Why does Sponge Bob have a big belly in this picture?" I asked. He immediately yelled out, "because he's going to have a baby!"
*as always, the names of the students have been changed.
Friday, November 7, 2008
Halloween
Nate and I had a great Halloween this year. Nate went as a used car salesman, which was by far the best costume he's had since I've known him. (in previous years he's been an undercover cop - a.k.a. he had no costume, and a P.E. teacher - which he actually is) I went as a 70s snow bunny.
We carved pumpkins with some friends and they turned out pretty well. They got a pumpkin carving kit and it was great for the smaller cuts, but only because the knife blade was tiny. It was actually a battery powered knife, which was cool. I thought my Frankenstein pumpkin was downright adorable.
For Halloween day, I participated in my first ever school Halloween parade at the elementary school I work at. We don't do that in Oklahoma, but here it's a pretty big deal. Even the teachers that wouldn't even wear pajamas for pajama day went all-out for their costumes. It was quite an experience. I went as a cowgirl, (I had lent my snowsuit to a neighbor. Her work was offering $100 for the best costume.) but I definitely didn't measure up to the other teachers.
That night we drove down to Fairview to visit my grandparents and had a great time with them.
The pumpkins outside our apartment.
Ta Da! The finished products!
We carved pumpkins with some friends and they turned out pretty well. They got a pumpkin carving kit and it was great for the smaller cuts, but only because the knife blade was tiny. It was actually a battery powered knife, which was cool. I thought my Frankenstein pumpkin was downright adorable.
For Halloween day, I participated in my first ever school Halloween parade at the elementary school I work at. We don't do that in Oklahoma, but here it's a pretty big deal. Even the teachers that wouldn't even wear pajamas for pajama day went all-out for their costumes. It was quite an experience. I went as a cowgirl, (I had lent my snowsuit to a neighbor. Her work was offering $100 for the best costume.) but I definitely didn't measure up to the other teachers.
That night we drove down to Fairview to visit my grandparents and had a great time with them.
Nate as a used car salesman, Deb as a snow bunny.
Here we are again at the ward party (our singles' ward).
The pumpkins outside our apartment.
Ta Da! The finished products!Friday, October 24, 2008
Saturday, October 11, 2008
Microorganisms and Band-aids
For the last month I have been working as a second grade tutor at an elementary school and I have been really enjoying it. I have a degree in Therapeutic Recreation and (as of Thursday morning when I passed the exam that I just spent the last four weeks studying for) I am nationally certified to practice as a CTRS - a Certified Therapeutic Recreation Specialist - according to the National Council for Therapeutic Recreation Certification. My job has absolutely nothing to do with my degree, however I still enjoy it immensely. So, until further notice I will press on with tutoring second graders. One of the benefits of this job is that I get to work with second graders and they are hilarious. Here are two of my favorite stories from this last week:
Everyday at school I supervise lunch recess, which since it is not in a structured classroom setting is where most of my funny stories come from. Kids run around like crazy and tattle on each other and I make sure they don't kill each other. I have to wear an enormous orange hunting vest so that I'm readily recognizable and easy to locate - as if being one of two adults on the playground doesn't clear that up.
While I was supervising recess the other day a cute little first-grade boy comes up and gets my attention. "Do you know that..." he says, and I start wondering who he is going to tattle on. Usually sentences that start with "Do you know that..." end with "so-and-so is climbing up the slide?" But he continues with, "there are microorganisms over in a mush spot on the soccer field?" Quite surprised, I said that I did not know that and asked him what they were doing. "Oh," he replied "they're just swimming around, and eating dirt." He seemed a little concerned by their presence so I told him that it was probably okay that they were there.
Wondering how a first grader even knew about microorganisms, I was just about to ask him if he'd learned that in class today when he dove off on a discussion about oceanic food chains. It involved a lot of, "and then a bigger fish comes and eats that fish..." type explanations. After which, he promptly ran away, leaving me chuckling to myself and wishing I still had the enthusiasm for learning that first graders do.
My other favorite story this week is about playground injuries. They seem to be a daily occurrence, but they're usually quite minor. In fact most of them don't even draw blood, but it seems to be the cool thing in the second grade to have a bag of ice or a band-aidto put on your battle wound. Actually band-aids seem to be a universal cure-all in the playground world. Just yesterday one of the kids came up to me and informed me that someone was hurt. I quickly followed him to the scene of the incident where I found a little girl bawling her eyes out. Naturally, I thought that something serious must have happened for it to be the source of so many tears, so I asked her what had happened and if she was hurt. She was crying so hard that she could barely speak to me, but eventually the story came out. She had hit her shin on the playground equipment, she showed me the spot so I could assess the damage. It was a little red and she had scraped of the first layer of skin, but there was no blood. Not so much as a scratch.
Now I may have a cold heart, but seeing as how this couldn't even be classified as an injury, I wasn't sure what to do with the sobbing child. I told her she would probably have a bruise, but that she would be fine. I even suggested that she get up and walk around on it and go play. This however, was only met with increased wailing, at which point I left her in the sympathetic hands of her fellow second graders.
Everyday at school I supervise lunch recess, which since it is not in a structured classroom setting is where most of my funny stories come from. Kids run around like crazy and tattle on each other and I make sure they don't kill each other. I have to wear an enormous orange hunting vest so that I'm readily recognizable and easy to locate - as if being one of two adults on the playground doesn't clear that up.
While I was supervising recess the other day a cute little first-grade boy comes up and gets my attention. "Do you know that..." he says, and I start wondering who he is going to tattle on. Usually sentences that start with "Do you know that..." end with "so-and-so is climbing up the slide?" But he continues with, "there are microorganisms over in a mush spot on the soccer field?" Quite surprised, I said that I did not know that and asked him what they were doing. "Oh," he replied "they're just swimming around, and eating dirt." He seemed a little concerned by their presence so I told him that it was probably okay that they were there.
Wondering how a first grader even knew about microorganisms, I was just about to ask him if he'd learned that in class today when he dove off on a discussion about oceanic food chains. It involved a lot of, "and then a bigger fish comes and eats that fish..." type explanations. After which, he promptly ran away, leaving me chuckling to myself and wishing I still had the enthusiasm for learning that first graders do.
My other favorite story this week is about playground injuries. They seem to be a daily occurrence, but they're usually quite minor. In fact most of them don't even draw blood, but it seems to be the cool thing in the second grade to have a bag of ice or a band-aidto put on your battle wound. Actually band-aids seem to be a universal cure-all in the playground world. Just yesterday one of the kids came up to me and informed me that someone was hurt. I quickly followed him to the scene of the incident where I found a little girl bawling her eyes out. Naturally, I thought that something serious must have happened for it to be the source of so many tears, so I asked her what had happened and if she was hurt. She was crying so hard that she could barely speak to me, but eventually the story came out. She had hit her shin on the playground equipment, she showed me the spot so I could assess the damage. It was a little red and she had scraped of the first layer of skin, but there was no blood. Not so much as a scratch.
Now I may have a cold heart, but seeing as how this couldn't even be classified as an injury, I wasn't sure what to do with the sobbing child. I told her she would probably have a bruise, but that she would be fine. I even suggested that she get up and walk around on it and go play. This however, was only met with increased wailing, at which point I left her in the sympathetic hands of her fellow second graders.
Tuesday, September 2, 2008
I Have a College Degree!
Well, after four years of work I finally made it to that light called graduation at the end of a long tunnel. My mom, dad and youngest sister came out to celebrate with Nate and me. The graduation speakers did well and inspired us all to do great things - my little sister Bug thought it all so interesting in fact that she doodled in her notebook through the entire proceedings. Anyway, for those of you who couldn't be here with us, here are some pics from the grand event.
Nate and me
Bug and me.
My wonderful parents and me.
Me in my cap and gown after commencement.
Now that I have successfully earned a college degree, I am left to wonder "Now that I have it, what do I do with it?"
Nate and me
Bug and me.
My wonderful parents and me.
Me in my cap and gown after commencement.
Now that I have successfully earned a college degree, I am left to wonder "Now that I have it, what do I do with it?"
Saturday, August 2, 2008
Achieving the Impossible
It has been another exciting week at camp. Since our Americorps team left us two weeks ago, we've been very short staffed (aka very busy). When they left, they reduced the number of our staff by half. So, this week we had youth with mental disabilities and interns became hybrid intern-counselors. Half our time was spent doing our regular activities and the other half was spent helping the groups out with whatever activity they were doing. I was privileged this week to be part of the Group B Wildcats (I'm pretty sure their mascot was taken from High School Musical) and there were several great stories from this week. I'll start with my favorite:
Thursday morning I was belaying at the high ropes course for one of the groups (acting as an intern for this part of the day). One of the boys in this group had a goal to try the high ropes course. He wasn't afraid of the height, but he had some strength, balance, and coordination problems that made him (and others) doubt his ability to climb up. However, he was determined to give it a try, and I was determined to help him do it. This guy was one of my favorite campers this week. He got his harness and helmet on and before too long had worked up his courage and was ready. Before climbing up, he had some questions, as most campers do, about the ropes, if they would break, and what happens if he were to fall. So I taught him a little about the belay system and how I would hold him up if he fell while climbing. Keep in mind however that he probably out-weighed me by a good 60 - 70 lbs.
In order to get up to the elements of the high ropes course, you first must climb 30 feet up little metal steps on a telephone pole. This in itself often proves a difficult challenge for our campers. When he started to climb, I called one of the counselors, Troll, over to be my backer. (Yes, that is her camp name and she did pick it herself) Because Casey* out-weighed me by so much and was unsure of his climbing abilities, she simply holds on to the loop on the back of my harness to provide a little extra strength and weight so I don't go flying off the ground if he were to fall. With both of us ready, Casey began climbing. He wasn't sure how to go about it though, so for each step we coached him on which hand or leg to move, where to put it, and which leg to stand up on to get higher. Even with this coaching, Casey could not physically do it on his own, so Troll and I started pulling on the rope to give him a little extra boost with each step. I often wound up a few feet off the ground with Troll pulling me backwards trying to get Casey just a little bit higher so he could get his foot on the next step.
By the time Casey's head got to the bottom of the wooden platform, he, Troll, and I had each worked so hard to get him up that there was no way that he was coming back down without making it to the top. My hand was cramping from holding the rope behind me in the brake position, and my legs ached from supporting myself in a lunge-squat-like position for so long. I felt like my arms and legs were going to fall off, but his courage and determination to meet his goal kept me holding on with all I had. It took us 20 minutes to get him up, but he made it because he never gave up; he never asked to come down, only how do I go up from here. All the effort was worth it to hear the excitement in his voice and see it in his face. He knew that he had accomplished the impossible.
Some might say that we cheated Casey by giving him so much help, that we gave him a false sense of confidence. I disagree. There are many things in this life that none of us can accomplish on our own. There are obstacles that there is no way we can overcome through only our own meager efforts. We all need help from each other and most importantly from our Savior. None of us can leave this world having never done wrong. We cannot be worthy to enter God's presence by our own merits alone. Because of our Savior was willing to pay the price for our sins, He has given us the greatest gift we can ever receive, that of repentance and the path back to live with our Father in Heaven. It is not cheating to accept this gift, making possible a miracle we can never achieve on our own. With our Savior's help each of us can accomplish the impossible.
Thursday morning I was belaying at the high ropes course for one of the groups (acting as an intern for this part of the day). One of the boys in this group had a goal to try the high ropes course. He wasn't afraid of the height, but he had some strength, balance, and coordination problems that made him (and others) doubt his ability to climb up. However, he was determined to give it a try, and I was determined to help him do it. This guy was one of my favorite campers this week. He got his harness and helmet on and before too long had worked up his courage and was ready. Before climbing up, he had some questions, as most campers do, about the ropes, if they would break, and what happens if he were to fall. So I taught him a little about the belay system and how I would hold him up if he fell while climbing. Keep in mind however that he probably out-weighed me by a good 60 - 70 lbs.
In order to get up to the elements of the high ropes course, you first must climb 30 feet up little metal steps on a telephone pole. This in itself often proves a difficult challenge for our campers. When he started to climb, I called one of the counselors, Troll, over to be my backer. (Yes, that is her camp name and she did pick it herself) Because Casey* out-weighed me by so much and was unsure of his climbing abilities, she simply holds on to the loop on the back of my harness to provide a little extra strength and weight so I don't go flying off the ground if he were to fall. With both of us ready, Casey began climbing. He wasn't sure how to go about it though, so for each step we coached him on which hand or leg to move, where to put it, and which leg to stand up on to get higher. Even with this coaching, Casey could not physically do it on his own, so Troll and I started pulling on the rope to give him a little extra boost with each step. I often wound up a few feet off the ground with Troll pulling me backwards trying to get Casey just a little bit higher so he could get his foot on the next step.
By the time Casey's head got to the bottom of the wooden platform, he, Troll, and I had each worked so hard to get him up that there was no way that he was coming back down without making it to the top. My hand was cramping from holding the rope behind me in the brake position, and my legs ached from supporting myself in a lunge-squat-like position for so long. I felt like my arms and legs were going to fall off, but his courage and determination to meet his goal kept me holding on with all I had. It took us 20 minutes to get him up, but he made it because he never gave up; he never asked to come down, only how do I go up from here. All the effort was worth it to hear the excitement in his voice and see it in his face. He knew that he had accomplished the impossible.
Some might say that we cheated Casey by giving him so much help, that we gave him a false sense of confidence. I disagree. There are many things in this life that none of us can accomplish on our own. There are obstacles that there is no way we can overcome through only our own meager efforts. We all need help from each other and most importantly from our Savior. None of us can leave this world having never done wrong. We cannot be worthy to enter God's presence by our own merits alone. Because of our Savior was willing to pay the price for our sins, He has given us the greatest gift we can ever receive, that of repentance and the path back to live with our Father in Heaven. It is not cheating to accept this gift, making possible a miracle we can never achieve on our own. With our Savior's help each of us can accomplish the impossible.
Saturday, July 12, 2008
Exfoliated Knees
This week I was working at the high ropes course at camp. I look forward to my day at the ropes course each week; in fact it's my favorite activity. This week we opened up a lot more of it than we usually do because it was organ transplant week, so the kids at camp were a lot higher functioning. As I was setting up the course, I got to complete some elements I had never done before, including ones called the catwalk and the Grand Canyon jump. The catwalk is a telephone pole that is about 25 feet up in the air and parallel to the ground. Once you walk across, there is a gap of several feet that you jump across to a platform on the other side (that's the Grand Canyon part). My jump to the platform was successful and I finished setting up that portion of the course.
-When I was done I had to jump back from the platform to the pole. That's a little more difficult because the pole, obviously, is round.
-When I was done I had to jump back from the platform to the pole. That's a little more difficult because the pole, obviously, is round.
At this point all of the campers had arrived and finished their safety lesson and all eyes were on me. I made it easily over the gap and onto the pole, but before I could get my balance I slipped off the edge of the pole. Now, as a side note for those of you who have never been on a ropes course I was still perfectly safe at this point because I was connected to a rope that went through a pulley connected to a steel cable over my head and down to someone who had me on belay. On my way down, I somehow managed to catch the pole with my ankles, hoping that I'd be able to swing myself back up onto the pole and finish the element. Unfortunately, I just hung there for awhile and couldn't get back on top, so I just let her lower me down.
I came out of all of this completely unscathed; my knees had been nicely exfoliated and I had a few splinters, but mostly I was just disappointed that no one got a picture of me hanging upside down by my ankles.
Saturday, July 5, 2008
A Sandlot Moment
If you have ever seen The Sandlot, think about Squints and Wendy Peffercorn as you read this story:
This week was teens week at camp and I was lifeguarding for swim time. I was at the pool for five hours that day and I was roasting! I sat down to reapply sunscreen and I started thinking about the Sandlot kids and how they were all in love with Wendy Peffercorn: "oiling and lotioning, lotioning and oiling..." and I laughed to myself. As I looked out at the pool, one of the campers was just floating there at the side and looking at me. I called out to him and asked him what he was doing and he replied, "staring at you." Taken aback, I asked why. He gave me a little smile and said "you know why." I didn't really know how to respond to that, I just laughed it off and looked around to see if anyone else was witnessing this.
Just a minute later I overheard this conversation between David*, the camper, and, Flipper, one of the counselors:
Flipper: Hey David, what're you doing?
David: Staring at the lifeguard.
Flipper: Why? Do you think she's pretty?
David: Yeah, she's smokin' pretty!
Flipper: Well, you'd better be careful, she's married.
David: No she's not.
Flipper: Yes, she is.
David: I don't believe you!
The way the he responded to Flipper's inquiries was so matter-of-fact that it made me almost fall out of my chair laughing. These campers certainly keep me on my toes!
*name has been changed
This week was teens week at camp and I was lifeguarding for swim time. I was at the pool for five hours that day and I was roasting! I sat down to reapply sunscreen and I started thinking about the Sandlot kids and how they were all in love with Wendy Peffercorn: "oiling and lotioning, lotioning and oiling..." and I laughed to myself. As I looked out at the pool, one of the campers was just floating there at the side and looking at me. I called out to him and asked him what he was doing and he replied, "staring at you." Taken aback, I asked why. He gave me a little smile and said "you know why." I didn't really know how to respond to that, I just laughed it off and looked around to see if anyone else was witnessing this.
Just a minute later I overheard this conversation between David*, the camper, and, Flipper, one of the counselors:
Flipper: Hey David, what're you doing?
David: Staring at the lifeguard.
Flipper: Why? Do you think she's pretty?
David: Yeah, she's smokin' pretty!
Flipper: Well, you'd better be careful, she's married.
David: No she's not.
Flipper: Yes, she is.
David: I don't believe you!
The way the he responded to Flipper's inquiries was so matter-of-fact that it made me almost fall out of my chair laughing. These campers certainly keep me on my toes!
*name has been changed
Wednesday, July 2, 2008
A Deceased Fish
I love my job. Its only drawback is that it takes me away from my sweet husband all week. All of my friends from school are tucked away being bad-mouthed by teens and doing paperwork for their internships, while I spend my mornings 30 feet up in the air helping kids with disabilities maneuver around a ropes course. In the afternoon we canoe or go to the pool and the evenings are spent fishing. And that brings me to today's funny camp story:
I finished up my responsibilities early yesterday evening and headed down to the fish pond to help out, hoping to do some fishing myself. Usually the pond is pretty chill and not too many fish get caught. The fish must have been hungry last night, however; altogether we caught ten fish! We do catch and release fishing, so I spent all of my time running around unhooking fish caught by campers. As the evening was coming to a close, I still hadn't gotten to do any fishing myself. (most of the other counselors are quite squeamish about touching fish, so I did all of the unhooking) Finally someone handed me a fishing pole and I got one cast out into the pond. I only waited 30seconds before I was reeling in a struggling rainbow trout!
When I got it up, I saw that there was no way that I would be able to get the hook out. It had swallowed it so deep that I couldn't even see it and unfortunately it was bleeding from its gills. We quickly cut it loose, hoping it could survive the ordeal. However, it was only a few minutes later that there it was, floating on the side of the pond. I scooped it out; all the while sitting on a poky plant and getting prickles in my derriere. When I got it untangled from the weeds, I had to be discrete about going to dispose of the fish, because some of the campers get upset when they see one dead.
I had a hard time deciding where to put it, not wanting to stink up the garbage cans and therefore the whole camp. I finally decided to dump it in the little creek that runs by camp. I figured fish die in there naturally all the time anyway so one more couldn't hurt. When I tossed it over, it immediately got stuck on the side and went nowhere. I couldn't just leave it there to rot, so I scrambled down the steep bank and scooped it back out with my net.
After scrambling back up the bank, I was standing outside the lodge when one of the counselors walked by and suggested that I wrap it up and stick it in the freezer for Chef Chris to cook for me. Brilliant! So I hosed of the pond scum and we wrapped it up and left a note for Chef Chris. Today when I went down to the dining hall for lunch, there was a note for me from Chef Chris. He had my fish all cooked and ready for me! I was a little nervous - I've never eaten a freshly caught fish or trout at all for that matter. It was delicious! I don't know what Chef Chris did to it, but I never would have guessed that that fish came out of that nasty pond!
I finished up my responsibilities early yesterday evening and headed down to the fish pond to help out, hoping to do some fishing myself. Usually the pond is pretty chill and not too many fish get caught. The fish must have been hungry last night, however; altogether we caught ten fish! We do catch and release fishing, so I spent all of my time running around unhooking fish caught by campers. As the evening was coming to a close, I still hadn't gotten to do any fishing myself. (most of the other counselors are quite squeamish about touching fish, so I did all of the unhooking) Finally someone handed me a fishing pole and I got one cast out into the pond. I only waited 30seconds before I was reeling in a struggling rainbow trout!
When I got it up, I saw that there was no way that I would be able to get the hook out. It had swallowed it so deep that I couldn't even see it and unfortunately it was bleeding from its gills. We quickly cut it loose, hoping it could survive the ordeal. However, it was only a few minutes later that there it was, floating on the side of the pond. I scooped it out; all the while sitting on a poky plant and getting prickles in my derriere. When I got it untangled from the weeds, I had to be discrete about going to dispose of the fish, because some of the campers get upset when they see one dead.
I had a hard time deciding where to put it, not wanting to stink up the garbage cans and therefore the whole camp. I finally decided to dump it in the little creek that runs by camp. I figured fish die in there naturally all the time anyway so one more couldn't hurt. When I tossed it over, it immediately got stuck on the side and went nowhere. I couldn't just leave it there to rot, so I scrambled down the steep bank and scooped it back out with my net.
After scrambling back up the bank, I was standing outside the lodge when one of the counselors walked by and suggested that I wrap it up and stick it in the freezer for Chef Chris to cook for me. Brilliant! So I hosed of the pond scum and we wrapped it up and left a note for Chef Chris. Today when I went down to the dining hall for lunch, there was a note for me from Chef Chris. He had my fish all cooked and ready for me! I was a little nervous - I've never eaten a freshly caught fish or trout at all for that matter. It was delicious! I don't know what Chef Chris did to it, but I never would have guessed that that fish came out of that nasty pond!
Saturday, June 28, 2008
The Beginning and Crossed Swords
I like to view my life as a series of grand adventures. This blog will be mostly dedicated to sharing them as well as my views and opinions of events and ideas. I am currently a therapeutic recreation intern working at a summer camp for people of all ages who have disabilities. I love it! There could not be a group of people who are easier to love. I am sure as the summer progresses there will be more entries about them and the antics and drama of camp life. After that, who knows where life's next adventure will take me, that's what makes it so exciting!
Here's a little taste of camp:
This last week at camp, we had a pirate themed kick-off party. The other interns and myself were dressed as pirates, complete with eye patches and a plastic sword I'd found in the arts and crafts closet. I passed through a group of campers to go and set up for the party, and talking like a pirate tried to get them excited about the pending party. They were excited to see a pirate and a young boy about 7 years old, stopped me and asked me what kind of sword I had. I told him to take a look and he excitedly stepped up to examine it. After only a moment's inspection he gave me a disappointed look and simply said "ninja." I frantically tried to convince him that I was actually half pirate and half ninja, but he shook his head and walked away. How was I to know that it wasn't actually a pirate sword?
Later that same evening as the party was starting, I was handing out pirate eye patches for the kids to wear. A counselor came up to me and said "Little," (that's my camp name) "I think it's so funny that you're wearing a ninja sword!" I was dumbfounded. In a matter of a few minutes two people had called me out on mixing up my swords! I never would have thought twice if I'd seen that sword on a pirate! All I can say is: be careful not to get your swords crossed; the kids are watching!
Here's a little taste of camp:
This last week at camp, we had a pirate themed kick-off party. The other interns and myself were dressed as pirates, complete with eye patches and a plastic sword I'd found in the arts and crafts closet. I passed through a group of campers to go and set up for the party, and talking like a pirate tried to get them excited about the pending party. They were excited to see a pirate and a young boy about 7 years old, stopped me and asked me what kind of sword I had. I told him to take a look and he excitedly stepped up to examine it. After only a moment's inspection he gave me a disappointed look and simply said "ninja." I frantically tried to convince him that I was actually half pirate and half ninja, but he shook his head and walked away. How was I to know that it wasn't actually a pirate sword?
Later that same evening as the party was starting, I was handing out pirate eye patches for the kids to wear. A counselor came up to me and said "Little," (that's my camp name) "I think it's so funny that you're wearing a ninja sword!" I was dumbfounded. In a matter of a few minutes two people had called me out on mixing up my swords! I never would have thought twice if I'd seen that sword on a pirate! All I can say is: be careful not to get your swords crossed; the kids are watching!
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