Learning

So, my summer's going pretty well. Last night was my first night off as a counselor and I was more than grateful for it. Working with kids 24/7 is fun, but it is extremely exhausting. Also, it was nice to have time to take a shower that lasts for more than two minutes, and to be able to drive away from camp and reach civilization (known as Wal-Mart).

Staff training was cool, mainly because it was such a learning experience. I had never done half of the things that I found would be required of me over the summer (like, you know, camping). But one week and a million bug bites later, I felt pretty confident about my chances of survival. All I needed to do was throw kids into the mix.

And now that I've gone about one week with kids, I can say that though staff training prepared me for camping, planning activities, and stuff like that, it really couldn't prepare me for dealing with kids. I think going to college to learn to be a teacher is very similar. It's not that there was nothing useful mentioned, it's just that once you're in the thick of things, a lot of what you've been told goes right out the window and you have to figure out what works (and, more importantly, what doesn't work) for yourself.

I've also learned a lot of lessons about life over this week. I've been working with a group of leukemia and hemophilia patients, and it's just been really inspiring. It's a good reminder of what real struggle is, and what real hope is. I mean, it really baffles me how a kid who has gone through chemotherapy is still afraid to go off the rope swing at the pond, but at the same time I think it's awesome. It's just cool to see that these kids who have gone through more than me (and probably many of you) are still regular kids. It's been an awesome week, despite the fact that I've yet to have a comfortable night sleep, my digital camera went missing, and my cell phone got wet and is officially as broke as I am. :)

Hope you're all having a great summer!