Always Learning, Always Growing

We just finished our third day of Recess!  So far I haven't had to send any of my kids to the Apple Room (for bad behavior), but I'm pretty sure I've set a record for the most injury reports in one day.  My kids were having one of those accident prone kind of days -- many of them ended up injuring themselves from the sharp corners of the benches at the lunch tent.  My kids managed to get attacked by the lunch benches, get injured fingers from wet sponges, get dirt in their eyes from playing "water ball," and fall on the slippery floor of The Pit (the youth building).  Yep, I'd say this is definitely shaping up to be a typical summer at Recess!  Only my kids could manage to pull this off.  Luckily, summer camp is all about getting dirty and messy!  (And my group definitely took this to heart today during "science" time -- we played with food coloring and shaving cream and then they decided to start throwing it at each other!)

I am having a blast so far with my group and with my fellow staff members.  It's great to see everyone interacting with the kids and even better to hear the kids say that they can't wait to come back the next day.  My group even made it a point today to tell me how much they enjoyed the food they were served for lunch.  What!!!???  That is definitely not something we would have heard from them last summer as they picked at their week-old cafeteria food.  Praise God for some amazing changes and improvements this summer!

My wonderful group of kids on their first day of Recess during lunchtime.  Photo courtesy of Living Stones Church.

As was the case last summer, I am continuing to grow everyday along with these kids.  My patience is constantly tested and I'm always being forced to think and act in creative ways in order to keep my group engaged and constantly learning.  So far this week, I've had to completely hose down a kid that fell in a mud puddle, duct tape a trash bag over a cast during pool time, learn several different schedules, memorize a ton of new names, and always stay enthusiastic and joyful even when it's incredibly hot and I'm feeling tired and lethargic. 

After Recess today, I enjoyed some cool-down time with Justin, Josh (Recess counselor), and Meredith (Recess director).  I love the fellowship that comes along with being a part of Recess and the awesome relationships that form.  God is truly at work at our camp!

As a side note, I went to IU South Bend yesterday for a brief orientation about my new position in the fall and chose my textbooks for my composition class I will be teaching!  I can't wait to start teaching at the college level in the fall.