christmas holidays

there's got to be something the holidays are good for other than storing up body fat for the next cold bitter months (although that seems a good option). Now that I'm on a break from school I feel like I have no personal routine, or purpose, for that matter. My time was so scheduled and now I'm feeling the lack of routine. Maybe that's the reason I'm blogging... because I'm bored. Hmm... what to do next? Perhaps I'll read a book.

Knowledge

Sometimes I get overwhelmed when I study in the library because of the vast array of books and knowledge staring me in the face. I feel the intense urge to discover it all... or to spend my life trying. I can spend hours at a time flipping through piles and piles of books, trying desperately to soak up the wisdom in the author's words. I would love to have more answers. But what good is it, when on my quest for 'knowing' I have missed out on the more meaningful parts of life? A good friend of mine recently found a quote and it goes something like this "Life is not meant to be thought of, but to be lived". This does not give me the excuse 'not to think', but rather it is a call for me to get my head out of the clouds; to stop thinking of life in only a theoretical perspective. This is profound because I, personally, tend to be too critical or overanalyze things quite frequently. But here again, I am reminded to live life as it is, and not just see how far it is from where it 'ought' to be.

everywhere; including Thompson

wow, this summer I have moved around a lot more than usual. As a summary overview, I was in Ontario (on Shoal Lake) for a week; in winkler for a week; at a drop-in center in Wpg for a week, in Reinland (home) for a week, in Thompson for two weeks, and now I am back in the winkler area for who knows how long. It is exciting looking back and seeing where God has taken me this summer as I opened up my heart to 'the unknown', essentially.

I arrived back from Thompson yesterday, after a long, full day of driving. But back to the beginning: I was nervous to go up and work at a camp I was completely unfamiliar with, but at the same time I was really excited to experience and serve "up north". I felt I needed to know more about Canada (even Manitoba) before I allowed myself to go overseas again. I don't really know what to say about my time at Midway Bible Camp, or just Thompson in general, because I feel I have too many things to share and I would rather talk one-on-one with people. But I do have to say it was incredible. I met a whole bunch of staff there that supported me and encouraged me as I was inexperienced with regards to the how the camp ran, but more so the culture of the First Nations people I interacted with. I'm not even sure which 'title' they prefer: Aboriginal, Native, Indian; so I'm just going to call them my friends-whom many of them are now. I praise God for all the opportunities to talk through His love and forgiveness with my campers, and I am so excited for these new relationships. God worked out all my transportation concerns, and allowed me to serve Him while feeling encouraged with what He is doing through the camp!

I am also looking forward to going back to school; to continue to learn more about how to live in community with many different types of people. One prayer request? That I would continue to seek out knowledge to glorify God; not to just add it to my own human growth and development.

ICYA

wow, last week was fun! I stayed with a friend at her aunt's place in the city and every morning, from monday to friday, we drove to Inner City Youth Alive ('The Bridge') in the north end. Our day started at 9am with a staff meeting and then we would disperse and go pick up the kids at their houses. At 10 we started with some singing and a skit, then storytime, crafts, and games. After this we would pack up bag lunches and hop onto the bus! Everyday from 1pm-3pm we went someplace new. I was in charge of all the 6 year old boys, along with two other leaders; that was an adventure! Between Steeve, Kashus, Phoenix, Dakota, Joey, MJ, Dylan, Blaize, Chris, Raoul, Shawn, and Shayden... -We sure had our hands full! These kids were full of energy and usually enthusiastic to try new things. They weren't old enough to understand why all the older kids would swear, bully, or vandalize, so that gave us a little bit of a break and so this week was more physically tiring than emotionally tiring. They were still somewhat innocent and sweet and so I pray that they would have positive role models in their lives so they could continue making good choices instead of following in the footsteps of their older brothers.

Our first out-trip on Monday was to Wheelies!! The only thing was that my little boys didn't have a clue how to rollerskate. So... one by one I would hold them in front of me and give them rides, while they pointed their rollerskates in the right direction and I was practically holding up all their weight. It was a blast, and I only had one major wipeout haha. After this we bused them back to the Bridge and we would walk them home again. My favorite part was picking them up and walking them home because I always chose the same street addresses so I really got to know the kids I was with; specifically Joey. He is just the sweetest little thing and he cared a lot for his friends and family.

Tuesday we took them to the Zoo and had a picture scavenger hunt, which was amazing. My little boys were more enthralled with a specific water fountain than seeing the animals, which was cute. But they did love the groundhogs and the peacocks. Most of these inner-city kids have never been to these places before, so I was glad they got to experience it. Wednesday we went to Lower Fort Garry and did activities. They got to beat animal hides, build teepee's and I even taught my boys how to play croquet! Thursday was swimming which all the kids loved, and Friday was a farm and a slip'n'slide. We had been participating in a contest all week, and they announced my group as the winners on friday! So me and all my 6 year old boys jumped into a 15 passenger van (we just barely fit) and headed down to McDonald's to treat them with McFlurries. They sure were rowdy! But it was a good week.

Another thing that was really neat was that my friend's aunt was also fostering 3 kids, and one of them happened to be in my teepee last year during the UGM week at Teepee Village. So that was really cool to connect with her again!

On Friday I'm heading out to Thompson to work at Midway Bible Camp, and I'm really excited! Also a little nervous cause I'm not sure what to expect and I've never been so far north before, but I know God will work things out.

second week

This past week I was at the main site, Crossview, for the week. I was a one-on-one counselor for a special needs girl named Kaila (pronounced Kyla) who was 13 years old. She had cerebral palsy which meant that she needed a lot of physical assistance and support as her right arm was severely deformed, and she couldn't use her right leg very well either. But she had so much enthusiasm for life! She gladly welcomed my help and allowed me to serve her all week without the hint of bitterness that usually comes with not being able to do certain things. She absolutely loved chapel even though she couldn't clap properly and was always a little off key. Once she had memorized all the songs, we sang them together everywhere... over and over and over!! She sang so much she ended up losing her voice by the end of the week but still continued to squeak them out. Kaila was a joy to be with, and I really hope she comes back next year!

This coming up week I'm heading to Inner City Youth Alive in Wpg with a friend to help with a VBS. I'm really looking forward to it, and I'll tell you how it goes!

Mission Point, ON

So this last week we picked up a whole bunch of inner-city kids from UGM, Wpg and bused them down to Mission Point, which is a camp on a small island in the middle of Shoal Lake, ON. What an adventure that was!! These tough kids all of a sudden were scared of bugs, leeches, and anything of the sort. Our goal is to take them out of their gang environments for a week and demonstrate Christ's love to them. It is hard work, when all they know is cussing each other out... and beating each other up. We take them on canoe trips, hikes, pontoon outings; we let them do archery, fishing, kayaking, canoeing, bikes, swimming; we lead them in singing and show them skits in chapel, help them develop character by teaching them to clean up after themselves, give them piggyback rides even when they're twice our weight, but most importantly we tell them about the One who has made them... and hug them and love them and tell them how much they are appreciated. It is truly something we can only do with God's strength. I will really miss the girls that were in my cabin: Alyssa, Justine, Sheila, Tanessa, Kianne, and Laquisha!! also other kids like Jayce, Emmanuel, Junior, Chanelle, Liam, Jonah, Presley, and Zion... No matter how many times they screamed "F--- you!" and threatened to run away, they fiercely made a way into my heart as I got to spend this past week with them: their beautiful smiles, their funny remarks, their simple questions, and their broken hearts.

he proposed!!

Last week there was a school group that ended up going to every single activity when I happened to be leading it. Canoeing, Ropes, TDA's, geocaching... etc. As there are many other staff that lead this is actually very rare. When the group made their way over to Firebuilding and saw me once again, one of the leaders exclaimed "Wow, she can do it all!! She is definitely Wife material!!" She then looked down at the kids, "boys, who wants to marry her??" Three hands shot up. One kid, wanting to be first, blurted it out... "Will you marry me?!!" :)

wet

Wow, has it been wet here at camp! It has poured and poured, then drizzled and poured some more. It's been hard to run activities with the constant downpour; people are slippin' and slidin' and falling all over the place. But yet we press on! :) During one of the geocaching activities I was leading today in the rain, all the kids eventually went off and found shelter without mentioning it to me. There was I was, walking around camp in the pouring rain for a good twenty minutes trying to find them and give them help because I thought maybe they were having problems with their GPS. Meanwhile they were dry as a bug sitting inside watching the rain. I just laughed when I found out.

impossible molecule

Tonight's night game was fun. I got even a bit more creative than usual and decided to come up with a costume to chase the kids around with. I dressed in all black and rubbed mud all over my legs, arms and face, then stuck a rhubarb leaf straight out of my headband. I grabbed handfuls of grass and shoved them behind my headband as well so it was sticking out to the sides then had some dangling in front of my face as if I were peering straight out of a bush. I also shrieked like a... wild animal, let's say. The kids were each given a ticket and they had to find the professor, who was dressed in a trenchcoat, and hiding in an unknown position in the camp. Once they found him and showed him their ticket they were allowed a quick glimpse at the molecule. After trying to memorize the design, they had to go back with their teams and try to re-create it. My job, as well as other staff, was to catch them and steal their tickets before they found the professor. It was a sweet game. I felt kinda barbaric, actually.

Camp is still going really well. I somehow am still enthusiastic, after a month and a half of trying to teach, lead, walk alongside and encourage kids who can be unwilling, trying, and stubborn at times. I still am unsure about which position I will fill during the summer, or if I'll even be at Winkler Bible Camp. I am really enjoying spring staff but I am having a hard time trying to picture myself in the role of counselor here for the fifth summer in a row. I have loved doing my one-on-one counseling role with special needs kids that come to camp, but I feel as if God may be calling me elsewhere this summer. Please pray that the Holy Spirit would guide me as I search for His calling regarding the next few months. Thanks!

Spring Staff

I'm not even sure how I decided to work at spring staff at Winkler Bible Camp. I knew about it for a long time, but I figured if I worked at camp for the spring I would get sick of it by the time summer rolled around. But I couldn't really find work anywhere else. So I applied, and the next week I began working. And it ended up being the best decision I could have made for my spring! I usually get up at 7am, begin work at 8 and our day is finished at about 8:30pm or 10pm, depending on the day. For the first few days we, as staff, did a lot of maintenance work because no school groups had booked yet. We managed to pull loads of weeds in the pouring rain, unearth and remove massive rocks from barren pastures and random junkyards, clean, sweep and mop tons of dirty bathrooms, mow the entire campsite a few times over, varnish 10 cabins worth of siding, clean miles of ditches while finding and spearing mice, and do absolutely anything else they could think of. Cleaning ditches was especially fun because we (my friend Caitlyn and I) found car parts including a sweet hubcap, a rubber Toyota thing, and a shiny red Pontiac symbol that we kept, cleaned, and hung in our room as decorations. But as May got further along we switched gears from maintenance work to running activities for the school groups that rented the camp for their school field trips.

Now in June our days are filled with school groups coming and going, most staying for two or three days. Sometimes there are up to 4 groups a day with 150 kids here at one time. It's crazy, loud and chaotic occasionally, but that's what it's all about. Caitlyn became the head wrangler so it's been exciting getting up early with her and rounding up all the horses from the pasture and saddling them before our early morning meetings. As for the activities, I've been teaching kids canoeing including paddling techniques and procedures and how not to get stranded on the other side of the lake, belaying and harnessing hundreds of kids at the 43 ft. climbing wall, running around exhausted playing soccer or 'steal the bacon' during group games, sending shrieking kids down our 350' zipline, making sure no one is breaking their limbs while trying to avoid touching the ground on the winding obstacle course, giving pushes to kids on the tarzan rope that end up jumping into the creek and wanting to do it over and over again, leading Team Development Activities (TDA's) to teach kids how to help and encourage others even when they get frustrated while being blindfolded, leading scavenger hunts and running to all corners of the camp helping them find the acorns, 3 leafed clovers, and shells they need, instructing kids how to build fires without using 50 matches (even while it is raining cats and dogs) and to make bannock that actually tastes good, dressing up crazy and chasing kids for the night games like Impossible Molecule, helping at the beach by supervising and swimming back and forth to the watertrampoline for hours for the kids that enjoy swimming in -30 degree weather with a 30km/h wind, teaching them how to use a GPS so that they walk in the right directions to find letters scattered all over the camp... it's been so much FUN!! Ok, well sometimes it's been rainy and cold, and it's frustrating when campers tip three of their canoes at the same time in the middle of the lake on purpose so I have to frantically go rescue them...lol but the staff here are incredible and can put a smile on your face whatever the circumstance!

A cool moment was when I got to stay in the cabins overnight with the school groups because they didn't have enough leaders. One of the girls ended up asking me about my lifestory so I got to share it with them, along with telling them about God. Because it is only rental season for the camp we are actually not allowed to openly express our faith with them unless they have asked about it. In this way it is a lot different then summer camp, but still great nonetheless. The next morning, all the girls ended up begging me to get them bibles to read! It was really neat! And I have so many more stories! maybe that's why I created a blog :)

Yes, we are really busy, and don't have a lot of free time, but I can't think of anything else I would rather be doing right now! :)

bit by a squirrel

So the other day I got bit by a squirrel. I was walking past the firepit at Winkler Bible Camp when all of a sudden I noticed a squirrel running along a log in front of me. I stopped, then it stopped. I walked closer and it jumped to the ground. I walked even closer. Soon I was standing over it and it still hadn't moved. Sweet! I reached down and grabbed it. As soon as my hand touched it its head spun around and chomped on my finger! Its teeth latched onto my thumb and I jumped back and yelped! I started flailing my arm around but the squirrel wouldn't let go! Finally, with the last bit of strength in me I flung my arm way back and it released and went sailing behind me, landing with a thump 10ft from me and scurrying off. I looked down at my thumb. The little critter had bitten right through my thumbnail and there was also a hole on the other side of my thumb that had started pouring blood. Ouch. Soon others began hearing of my... misadventure... and recommended I call the Public Health number to ask about rabies. phffff. There's no way I was going to call. Ok, fine. I called. They began taking down my medical information and finally the question was asked. "... So did you happen to.. provoke.. the squirrel?" Hmm. Yeah. yeah, I guess you could say that. I went and got my Tetanus shot.