mmm, I want to linger, a little longer...

Well, I'm back from Camp Classen. I've checked my phone messages (just junk), sorted through the mail (lots of more junk with an assortment of somewhat important stuff), checked my emails (a lot for one sitting), read the blogs (so fun!), caught up on life in the real world ( so there was a protest???) and started to unpack and do laundry (not fun).
Camp was great. I absolutely loved being around the fifth graders. We went to Turner Falls in Oklahoma the first day to do a scavenger hunt. My part was to station myself at a certain point, wait to be found, and hand out a rock with the word "survivor" written on it. I was given the spot at the Chapel. So I set up my chair on the wooden porch and enjoyed the tranquility of the surroundings. That is until the noise of running, screaming fifth graders came down the road to find me. The next three days were non-stop. We hiked the trails. Up and down, then up and down again. I kept hoping to see some wildlife, but I only saw some in the form of fifth grade boys. Oh well...We went to the archery range. I hadn't shot an arrow in years. I'll have you know, I got two bullseyes in six attempts! I won't tell you where the other four arrows are, though. They may still be looking for them. The "snake man" came one night. The room was filled with 100 screaming kids and probably 15 snakes, two of which were very, very long boas. I don't know which were more afraid, the snakes or the students. And no, I didn't touch the snakes, but I would have, really! I took some groups of students through a "challenge course." The "giant's finger" was a favorite. The objective was to lift a tire up and over a telephone pole, touch the ground, and back over again. All the while someone had to be touching the tire. Of course, the pole was much, much higher than the students. And they couldn't use the pole as a support. They were supposed to act as a team, without my input. Watching the students through this course was so much fun. There were times when we were all doubled over in laughter. We first went on Tuesday and they all had so much fun, they couldn't wait to go back on Thursday. On the way back from the course, one boy said to me that this was the best week of school ever! One of my jobs this week was to give out medications, both morning and night. I felt like a mom to these kids. The best part of the week for me was getting to know the names of more than 120 fifth-graders. And not just the names, but the personalities of some of these kids. It made me sad to think that I only have two months more to spend with these students. I felt like I built some relationships with them. Every night at bed check, around 10:00 pm, the teachers went from cabin to cabin ( 14 in all!) and sang the same song to them. We even had a little dance movement going on. The song started " mmm, I want to linger, a little longer, a little longer here with you." By the end of the week, we had added a few more verses. They all looked forward to having us come in and hug them goodnight. Even the boys. Maybe even more so. It's funny. I was a little anxious about going to camp for the first time. I didn't go with Pam and Becca.. though I went up for parents' day when Pam was there, 11 years ago. (Can't believe it was that long ago. The place looked the same.) But after having spent a week with these fifth-graders who just love on you, I can't imagine not going again. The song will be playing through my head for a while, "mmm, I want to linger, a little longer, a little longer here with you."