girls' camp

Two days after returning from Oregon, I went to Girls' Camp. It actually started on Monday, but I had so much laundry and unpacking to do and I hadn't even thought about camp yet. I had been dreading it just a tad because of the timing. (I am just so ready to get back to my regular schedule after more than a month!) But I am so glad I went.

First of all, I am not a camper. At all. I can only remember going to Girls' Camp twice when I was in Young Women's. But Heber Valley Camp has made a camper out of me! We're talking luxury camping accomodations:

Cabins, actual bathrooms, showers, propane stoves. Every camp even has a small pantry room with a fridge! That's what I'm talking about.


Our camp director is all kinds of cute. Everything she touches turns to cute. She made this adorable banner for our cabana.

This centerpiece was complete with little tags for people to write down all of the kindnesses they witnessed in our camp, then we tied the tags on the branches.

Our stake theme for 2008 was "The Lord Looketh on the Heart" and each ward chose a different kind of heart -- we were a kind heart. We talked throughout the week about kindness, and also about the different ways we wanted our hearts to be: open, softened, courageous, giving, loving, slow to anger, discerning, as well as kind. A heart like His. We had so many great discussions.

We also had a lot of fun! The manmade lake had not yet been constructed the last time I went to Camp (4 years ago?). The girls were in canoes and the leaders in paddleboats, because the canoes almost always get tipped over.

We still managed to get plenty wet, since all the girls came by and splashed us with their oars, then tried to climb into our boats after they tipped their canoes.

Our steering mechanism broke and we could only turn left. That led to much hilarity as we were just going in circles. We eventually had to get towed back to shore by another boat!

We had a few pranks, but nothing that truly bothered anyone. Of course I had to document this!

Bears were sighted in our camp area last week. We were given flyers on how to prevent bear attacks and what to do if we had a bear encounter. Slightly scary, especially when he heard dogs barking nearby and found out later they had been sent to scare off the bears!

One Beehive that I have a special affinity for whittled herself a whole arsenal of "weapons", just in case. I love the way everyone's personalities come out at camp. There is just no way to duplicate the way everyone gets to know each other and the bonding that occurs during that week.

The only wildlife I saw personally was deer and about a million squirrels. Some people saw 3 moose on the other side of the pavilion, but I missed them. We even two deer charge through our campfire testimony meeting! Startling, then funny.

On Wednesday afternoon, the stake leaders invited all of the ward leaders to the pavilion for a "leaders' retreat". Never having been to a leaders' retreat before, I had no idea what to expect. They totally spoiled us! They were giving hand and shoulder massages, they set out basins of hot water with eucalyptus for foot soaking, they had reading materials for discussion, and a huge spread of gourmet food.

Italian sodas!

Beautiful fruits and vegetables, hummus, even chocolate fondue! Was I ever glad I brought my camera along -- otherwise I figured no one would ever believe we ate food like this at camp. (By the way, my favorite thing was the cucumber slices that you dipped in kosher salt and black sesame seeds. YUM.)

Don't worry, we did our share of Dutch oven cooking, too. But on Bishop's Night, a member of our bishopric who is the head of food at Thanksgiving Point brought dinner for us, catered by Harvest restaurant! Chicken cordon bleu, spinach salad, roasted vegetables, fruit salad, rolls, and cheesecake -- can you say spoiled?

As great as the food was, and the crafts, and the flag ceremonies, and our lip synch, and the leaders' retreat... the greatest thing of all were these girls. All of the Laurels came, and they really set the tone at our camp. They made a special effort to make sure that everyone was included, and they made it look effortless. There were two or three girls that we were a little concerned about ahead of time, that are shy or a little socially backward, that just hadn't quite assimilated into the group. Well, no more. I couldn't be more proud to be working with these young women!

As usual, Bishop's Night was the very best part, especially our testimony meeting. One of the really shy girls stood and thanked everyone for making her feel so welcome, and said it had been the best week of her life! Our bishop made reference to the vast difference between Scout Camp and Girls' Camp. He said that while he loved the young men, there was just something special about the young women -- he encouraged them to be patient with the young men while they worked to catch up! No doubt.

We had three mothers of young women in our group, and I watched them as their daughters bore sweet testimony of the divinity of Jesus Christ. Tears streamed down my face as I imagined how proud and tender they must feel. I hope that I can experience that someday, as a mother as well as a leader.

The sixth year girls gave out the awards to everyone afterwards. I don't think anyone felt badly about their award, and that was a first as well!

We had a surprise: our bishop had hinted that his first counselor had a hidden talent he wanted to share with us at camp. The girls had been wondering all week what it could be, and they badgered him all Thursday night about it. Finally he divulged that he is a firewalker! As soon as they heard that, they all tried to dissuade him from doing it, fearing for his safety. (I got such a kick out of that, since I know the Scouts would have been egging him on!)

He told us that coals aren't as hot as you think. (Um, okay...) He juggled some, then took off his shoes and socks and walked across them! Crazy, and oh so unexpected.

After attending camp, it's hard to believe our new ward was formed just a few short months ago. There was more unity in our group of Young Women and leaders than I've ever seen! I went from struggling to remember everyone's names to having a history with every single other person there -- and ALL of our girls went to camp! I know that prayers were answered, and I feel like the Lord touched our camp. Now I can't wait for next year.