Sunday, July 14, 2013

Whispers from the hills...


Tucked snuggly, buggly tight among the mountains and hills of Northeast Tennessee is a little camp - Camp ACC.  Since I was in what was once called Junior High School, I have attended this camp more times than I can probably count on my fingers and toes. I began as a camper and have continued on in the role as camp counselor.  My kiddos have now joined my tradition.

Besides the obvious spiritual lessons learned during my weeks there, these Tennessee hills have taught me oh so much more.  This little blip on my GPS seems ever so small; however, the subtle life lessons I have learned, the life lessons that have been whispered to me through the winds that roll down from the mountains, have been anything but small.  They have been wise reminders of daily living and today, I will share.

Keep on keepin' on - persevere.  Camp and rain do not mix.  I mean really, 85-90% of our awake time is spent outdoors. Upon arriving last weekend, we were greeting by a torrential downpour that continued on throughout the evening.  Again on Wednesday, sheets of water could be seen dropping from the sky while we were eating dinner - creating miniature lakes and rivers on the already water soaked camp property.  And once again on Thursday, drippy drops of a soft rain came to down to join our fun.  I guess it would be cliche to say - In every life, a little rain must fall, but I'm saying it anyway.  The rain didn't stop our plans or more importantly, our fun.  At times, we adjusted the plans, but fun was still had by all.  We persevered.  We kept on going. How many times in life do we let obstacles dampen our spirits?  Hold us back?  Give us an excuse to quit?  Instead, listen to the whisper - "Keep on keepin' on."

It is our uniqueness that makes us great.  Putting 90+ campers and 25+ counselors all together 24/7 for a week can be a challenge.  We are packed into breakfast, lunch, dinner; classes, electives, campfires;and pools, canteens, games, cabins.  Honestly, it can be a bit claustrophobic at times. 

We are all similar, of course, in that we are human beings.  Between some of us though, the similarities stop there!  We must find a way though to coexist, cohabitate,  to down right get along for a week.  During the numerous times that we were all gathered together, I often looked around at the variety of faces, hair colors, skin shades, personalities, backgrounds, quirks...  



I began to realize that those uniquenesses make us who we are as a whole.  If we were all the same, what a boring group we would be!  So from North Carolina to Nigeria, from age 7 to 70, from timid to tenacious, it is our uniqueness that makes us great.

Life can be doggone messy at times.  But it is our attitude that can make all the difference!  The particular week of camp that I work, has an interesting tradition. In an effort to raise money for the week's missionary, we hold an auction.  At this auction, teams of campers and counselors have the opportunity to bid on ridiculously and outrageously messy, gross "consequences."  When a team wins a bid for a certain consequence, they then get to select a counselor to be the recipient!  It's all done in fun and camp familial love; however, it is crazy messy!  


Throughout the years, I have noticed that when involved in this activity, attitude makes all the difference.  It's not pleasant; sometimes, it even smells atrocious. But the kids love it!  And it's for a good cause.  So approaching the mess with a good attitude is a must.  What a great reminder for me - to approach life's messes with a good attitude.  Wow - I often need that one!

It's surprising what one can learn while tucked away tightly in these hills - only a little speck on the big, wide, world globe. It's surprising what we can learn when we listen beyond the shouts and adjust our ears to the whispers.