Camp director...top ten things I learned while at camp...

1. You need LOTS of water when it is 90+ degrees outside.

2. 
   

   If you spray your cabin with home defense bug spray it isn't as 'buggy' in your tent.
   
3. I have a new appreciation for the convenience of indoor plumbing and NOT having to put on shoes, grab a flashlight and walk about 50 or so yards to the bathroom at 2:30 AM. And the bathroom has no electricity. Ok So it was not nearly as bad as the one in the picture...but at 2:30 in the
   morning...it FEELS like it...
   
4. The cooks at Camp

   

   were WONDERFUL! It makes things a lot nicer when after a hot HOT HOT day of camping and certification and sweating and sweating you can come to the mess hall and have a great meal prepared by the wonderful volunteers in the Stake. Thanks Cookies...we love you!
5. Camp doesn't just happen. I remember when I was a girl going to girls camp. I thought it just 'happened'. Ummm...yeah...NOT. There is so VERY much planning and work involved even before getting to camp. Thanks to all the stake leaders that put so very much effort into making 2009 camp a wonderful and spiritual experience. I was blessed to be there.
6. Sometimes, even when you are in pain, the people around you can help you feel better...or at least work through the pain. I had injured my back about 2 weeks before camp and was very worried that I wouldn't even be able to go because I couldn't really walk or sit or stand for very long. NOT conducive to camp living. I was healed enough luckily to go to camp. I was armed with Pain killers, ice packs and a Tens unit to help with the pain. The week turned out wonderfully. The girls were awesome and the leaders were all so kind. Everyone seemed to work together so well and with a happy heart. It made my heart smile to see how the girls were all just so kind to each other. Even with people they didn't know. Again...even though I was in pain...I was happy to see it....
7. A little rain on a hot day can feel like a TREASURE when you have been hot for so long. Being without A/C gave me a new appreciation for a gentle breeze. When you are covered in sweat and there is a nice little breeze, it is almost like sitting in front of a fan...almost. :)
8. When camping, ALWAYS have a flashlight with you...ALWAYS...even if it is in the

   
   

   middle of the afternoon. When it gets dark...it is dark. Flashlights are you friend!
9. When packing up the last day of camp watch out for stairs. You may just trip and biff it in the kitchen. And that hurts. Yeah. After my back hurting and hurting I went home on Thursday to get adjusted and to sleep in my own bed. I came back in the morning on Friday to help the girls pack up. There was a girl looking for her retainer in the trash can and I went to help her look. It sucks to dig through the trash so I figured she could use some help. So we dug and dug and no luck. Didn't find it. So I was walking back into the kitchen to wash my hands and BLAM! I tripped over the step and went down like a ton of bricks. I smacked my arm on the trash can and landed flat on my knee. O U C H!!! So I had a nice bruise on my arm as a souvenir from camp. lol
   
10. When all the sisters at camp all gather together and sing the Spirit of God, the Spirit is so very strong that it almost takes me breath away. That feeling made all the sweat and the pain and the heat and all the other tedious stuff totally worth it. It really did. The Spirit of girls camp is powerful. And it is real. And I have no doubt that it is poured out upon these girls in the woods and helps them to grow and be strong latter-day-saint women. And it is so great...that a lowly camp director can benefit from its power as well. And come away from camp a better person...AND with a great shiner on her arm. :)