Embark in the Service of God: 2015 Young Women's Camp

Now in the full swing of summer, many families spend their weekends and holidays communing with nature by leaving the comfort of their soft beds in temperature-controlled homes in favor of a sleeping bag on the hard ground inside a tent. It's called “camping,” and it's a beloved summer tradition. Camping has many perks. Kids can get as dirty as they want with no parental shame. It is relatively inexpensive compared with the cost of hotels, especially for larger families. And there is something quite basic, quite honest about sleeping outside among the trees and animals. It brings us close together and teaches us much about ourselves, others, nature, and our relationship with all three.

These past four days I had the privilege of camping with 10 adorable young women, ages 12-16, and two other leaders, both delightful women and new friends. I think the word “awesome” is woefully overused, but in this case, I can't think of a better expression to capture the essence of our four days at Young Women's camp. The 12 of us camped alongside maybe 100 other young women from our stake and numerous leaders and helpers, cooks, nurses, fire fighters, trained challenge course specialists, and more. These many volunteers united with one common goal: Give these sweet, young daughters of God the opportunity to grow closer to Him and to their Savior.

Why camping? Lots of reasons, but one that initially comes to mind is that camping is hard. Everything about it is hard. From eating to sleeping to something as simple as going to the bathroom, everything is harder when you're camping. But we learn through the experience that we can do hard things. And that is valuable. In addition, while camping, these young women left all electronics behind, so they could be present in the moment, not texting, posting to social media, or taking selfies. They communicated with each other in person. They had conflicts, yes, but they resolved them face to face, not through an impersonal text message.

Camping also presents various physical challenges. This particular camp has a challenge experience that concludes with a ropes course followed by a zip line. Some girls are afraid of heights; others wonder if they are strong enough to climb the telephone pole or brave enough to walk across the rope so high. I wondered these things myself, truth be told. But I did it anyway, as did the majority of the 100+ girls at camp. They learned to challenge themselves even when they feel scared and to trust in their own abilities.

Most important, there is something spiritual about being out in nature, where all around you is the beauty of God's creation. Late Wednesday night, all the girls and leaders formed a giant circle called “Circle of Light” and ward by ward, broke through the darkness with flashlights, and sang a song associated with each ward's assigned Young Women's value. It was simultaneously peaceful and powerful, serene and strong. As the girls from our ward sang about virtue, you could feel their strength, their conviction, their testimonies.

And of course we can't forget the most basic element of girls' camp: FUN! From crafts to snipe hunting to tent laughter till the wee hours of the morning, “My hands are high, I'm in the groove, and this is how I bust a move!” I was blessed to be part of this Young Women's camp. I had the added burden of a crazy horrible allergic reaction that caused relentless sneezing; watery, swollen, red eyes; and decreased energy. Nevertheless, it was a joy to participate.

“Therefore, O ye that embark in the service of God, see that ye serve him with all your heart, might, mind and strength, that ye may stand blameless before God at the last day" (D&C 4:2).

Friends are friends forever

Friends are friends forever,

If the Lord's the Lord of them.

And a friend will not say never

For the welcome will not end.

Though it's hard to let you go,

In the Father's hands we know,

That a lifetime's not too long to live as friends.

The words of Michael W. Smith's song ring particularly true today for Seth and me. These past few days he and I were blessed with the opportunity to reunite with some of our closest friends, and though saying goodbye today was difficult, we are so grateful we had this time. Seth and his friend Ethan spent the week at EFY up in Logan. They have been friends since the inception of the Skyview Ward in Billings, Montana back in 2009 when they were just nine years old. We left Billings when they were eleven, but their friendship has continued strong these past four years. They were just little boys back then:

 

This was literally the day we left Billings. I'm pretty sure they both cried. And here they are today, handsome young men, still just as kind and sweet as they were as children:

Brenda and I are proud moms for sure. They had a wonderful week at EFY, even better than last year, Seth says. I wonder if they will be friends forever. I hope so.

Coincidentally, these past three days I was also blessed with the rare opportunity to hang with two of my favorite people in the world. Say what you want about Billings, but I'm convinced it's the most perfect place on earth to make lifelong friends. I met Celeste when I was called as Relief Society President. Was that 2007? Or 2008? Regardless, I needed a counselor who could handle all the party planning/cooking/crafting/decorating/etc. that goes on in relief society, and Celeste was just that person. No one does it better. We met Lindsey shortly thereafter. The three of us lived within 1/4 mile of each other in a delightful little neighborhood in Billings Heights. It was lovely.

But all too soon, Celeste moved clear to San Antonio, and about a year later, Lindsey moved to Rexburg. With both of them gone, I couldn't see any real reason to stay in Billings, so we came here to Utah. (Okay, no, that wasn't the reason we moved, but it made moving a whole lot easier.) I get to see Lindsey fairly often; Rexburg isn't too far away, and Eli is in school there. But San Antonio, not so much. It had been around five years since we had all three been together.

But that's the thing with forever friends. Time doesn't really matter. You are together for five seconds, and it's as if you were never apart. Here we are at the Soda Vine, where we may or may not have ordered one of everything on the menu: soft pretzels, peach and raspberry gelati (layers of Italian ice and custard), chocolate covered rice crispy treats, and Dirty Diet Cokes, Dirty Dr Pepper in Celeste's case. Well, just see for yourself:

They had to roll us out of there, but the next day we were at it again with lunch at McDonald's (because it's what we do), and fun pedicures with sparkly accent toes. The crowning event, however, the epic moment of our three days together, came late last night when we played a thrilling game of Phase 10. You should know the back story. These two ladies have been creaming me in this and every other game for as long as I can remember. I think Lindsey's exact words were, "Would you like to lose a game?" I never win. Never. And they don't care. They don't have one ounce of compassion or sympathy. They just laugh at my incompetence.

But that all ended last night. I am now the reigning Phase 10 champion until the next time we play. I hope it's not too long. You have no idea how much I hope that.

No more pencils, no more books...

For many young people, this time of year creates unparalleled joy as they anticipate late nights spent absorbed in favorite video-games followed by lazy mornings, sleeping till noon. Or endless days swimming in a lake, hiking in a forest, or sitting under a tree with the latest book by a favorite author. Indeed, for many young people, one day this week will be the day they have anticipated for weeks or even months: The last day of school.

Today was that day for Seth, who finished up his freshman year of high school. The hilarious thing is when he left this morning, he wasn't even aware today was the last day. He thought the last day was Friday. How could he possibly not know this?! So around 9:00, I received this text message: “TODAY IS THE LAST DAY OF SCHOOL! WHERE ARE WE GOING FOR LUNCH?”

One tradition the two of us have is going out for lunch on the last day of school, which is typically a half day. It began way back when he was in first grade. I picked him up, and as he jumped gleefully into my car, I asked, “Where do we go to celebrate my big second grader?” “Fuddrucker's!” he replied. And so it began. For the next five years, on the last day of school, he and I went to Fuddrucker's for lunch.

Then we moved to Utah. When he finished sixth grade, we searched unsuccessfully for a Fuddrucker's and had to settle for Red Robin instead. That was three years ago. It feels like yesterday. It even feels like yesterday that I picked up that excited, brand new second grader after his final day of first grade. Time is tricky.

He wasn't quite as animated when I picked him up today, but you know, there's a certain coolness that is required of high school guys. Still, the glow in his eyes and the smile on his face told the real story; he is free and beyond ready for the lazy days of summer. No more pencils, no more books!

He slid into the car, and I asked, “Where do we go to celebrate my big sophomore in high school?” His reply: “Panda Express.” And so it was.