Life in a fishbowl...

Kids are awesome!

We just finished a retreat for 9 to 12 year olds.  It was all about emotions and how to handle them in a Godly and self controlled way. (I was thinking of Benjamin when I realized that would be a good theme for this age!)  Angela and Francis, two of our counselors (see picture below), were the teachers. They did a great job of helping the kids understand in creative, fun ways how our emotions can be good or bad depending on our actions, and how the Holy Spirit can help us control them and use them in a good way. 

 

We had a bunch of new kids this weekend (about 10). Every night before we send the kids to their cabins, we stand in a big circle "mano a mano" (holding hands) and pray. On Friday I happened to be standing next to one of the new girls, and she excitedly told me, "I just got here, and I love it already!" It's awesome to hear something like that!  That means that God's love is being poured out on these kids through the counselors and staff.

 

I am reminded every time we have this age in camp of the differences between boys and girls. It's hilarious.  Saturday morning I woke up around 7:15 because I could hear the boys from what I thought was their cabin. I decided to go and let the counselors know that it was OK to take them outside to play before breakfast sincethat was still over an hour away. As I left the house though, I saw several sleepy counselors already outside playing with a bunch of wild, energetic boys. I was informed that they had been awake since 6:30.  I went to wake up the girls, and as I entered I saw smiling faces everywhere.  I was told by equally sleepy counselors that the campers had been awake since 6 planning what they were going to wear that day.

 

On Sunday as we were going into the comedor to eat lunch, some parents arrived to pick up their son.  He was one of the new kids and decided to eat before he left. As he came in I commented to him about this, and he said, "Yeah, the food here is great, a lot better than my mom's at home!" I was glad that his mom had stayed outside to wait for him!

Noche de Tacos

Jon and I have realized over the years that we are really bad at a couple of things.  Perhaps you can guess the first one when you look at how often I post things on this blog.  Long distance communication is not something that comes naturally to us unfortunately.  We are and have been working on that  with varying degrees of success.

We are also not so good at cultivating community. 

The weird thing is that we both like people, we like to talk, we like to hang out, we like to have people at our house. For some reason though it rarely happens on its own. There are some people who just show up or call and say "come pick me up, I want to come over."  I won't mention any names....Stephanie "I'm comin to your house this weekend" Almonte!  Personally, I love it when they do that.  And if they left it up to me  or Jon it might not happen since we are severely lacking in the let's do something today category.

Recognizing these flaws has made us try to be intentional about creating community here at camp.  I live ten feet from Julio and Beth's door.  I have hung out with Beth for a period of more than 10 minutes with her maybe once in the past month.  That's no good.  Realizing that part of the problem is just life and busyness,  we decided to start "taco night".  Everyone has to eat right?  We all eat around the same time, right?  So why not do it together once a week.  Tonight was the first "taco night" we have had since before summer (due to camp busyness and our trip to the states). Here's a peek at what it looked like:

Imagine my kitchen with it's beautifully tiled floor and fully functional electrical abilities...ahhh imagination....now imagine three tables set up together, Logan is helping to put cheese into the bowls, Eli wants a yogurt cause "they're really good mom", Beth (who later will stand for 45 minutes by the refrigerator making up weird magnet phrases in spanish..un momento bien duro..with Stephanie, oh yeah, she and Fred came late and finished off all of the food) is cutting up a to-ma-toe, the elders Mr. Lawrence and my dad are in a deep conversation about something very serious and entertaining, oops....Logan just spilled a bunch of cheese onto the table. "Don't worry mom, I got it," said while swiping it all onto the floor. Sunny, the golden retriever, is trying to scratch down the back screen door because Grandma is here and needs to pet her immediately.  Sit down everyone so we can pray.......Ben, put the book down and come here to eat.  Mr. Dave comes back with a big bowl of ice for drinks which Grandma eats later for desert because Mrs. Barbara is not here and she usually brings that.  It was decided that Jim, the new guy from Michigan, will be the desert bringer now.  Hear that, Jim?  Hey old timers....sit down so we can start.  So they sit down together and show Ben the almost 11 year old how to be obnoxious (like 11 year old boys need help with that) by hitting the bottom of your cup with your fork.  Logan, don't take a bite; we're going to pray. 

Thank you Lord that even though we are not very good at this community thing it happens anyway. It's fun. It's good. It's important.  Buen provecho!

 
 
 
 
 
 
 

More from Maddie....

 

So while I was a dores in Puerto Rico for July, I kept a journal every day. I came home and it was eaten by my car. Luckily, I was able to find it in the abyss my car threw up. So while I was sitting for a 3 hour layover in GA (and waiting for my alabama girls to come say hello!) I wrote a list of things I learned. And since I've found my notebook, I'll share for funsies.

 -Bugspray! Bugspray! Bugspray!

 -OFF  is false advertising.

 -Carry anti-itch gel with you everywhere.

 -You can still be late on Puerto Rican time.

 -Everyone makes mistakes.

 -Everyone has on a mask. Look behind it.

 -Puerto Ricans are 98% of the time more fun than most Americans (excluding the cool gringos who spend their summers at Campa, duh)

-God is always talking. Are we listening?

-Be childlike in faith...and energy.

-Cold showers are glorious.

-Gnats (prounounced: guh-nats) and mosquitoes are sent from Hell.

-Fanny packs are entirely legit.

-Grace NEVER runs dry.

-Dishes and dancing go together.

-Never mock the "cool" guy's walk. Theresa will make you show him how he walks.

-The appropriate response to "Buen Provecho" is "Gracias" in a high-pitched screechy voice.

-Ingrid Michaelson is universally loved.

-Not all girls are stupid.

-Being yourself is more than enough.

-Not everyone acts out of selfish purposes.

-People love you.

-Skype is vital.

-Wear watershoes on mud night and run away from boys with agression.

-Never get seconds on rice and beans, there will be more the next meal.

-God is always there.

-When your roommates start a prank war with one of your FEW HEALTHY OGFs move to the other cabin laugh at them endlesslesly.

-Love. I learned about loving for others and how others genuinely love and have a passion for Christ, and love me.

-"I do not want my image of God, I want God." - C. S. Lewis

-NEVER EVER EVER volunteer to clean someone else's living space. Especically if it has been occupied by males.

-The opposite of love is fear, and we often tend to live through fear instead of love.

This was written by Maddie Poole from North Carolina.  I liked it and thought you might too.

Sal y Luz

 
There is a retreat this weekend in camp.  Right now 36 kids (ages 9 to 12) are playing, having fun and learning more about how to be salt and light in their world.  Please pray for them.  Pray for Francis who is learning to be a camp director by doing.  She is a college freshman with a heart very willing to serve and fill a need. Pray also for Desiree who is being used of God to teach the kids. Pray for Angel who is running the games for us. And pray for the counselors who are with the kids 24/7 this weekend. 

OFF vs. CUTTER - No Competition

Close your eyes and take a deep breath. Imagine the roar of the ocean and the rustling of the palm trees. In your legs and arms you start to feel a tingle. Suddenly the sensation has taken over your entire body. Happiness? Excitement? Nerves? Worries? It's none of these things; it's mosquitoes. Everyday I wake up hot and sweaty. I climb down my ladder and get ready for the day. After ignoring the afro my hair has turned into I change clothes, walk outside and take a bath. A bath in bug spray that is. And if I ever forget to put it on, I'll be reminded within 5 minutes of being outside. And I don't use the wimpy bug spray from the states, I use the heavy duty hardcore Puerto Rican bug spray. My theory is if the people who live here use it, it must work. And NONE have been using Off, Cutter is where my loyalty lies.

Today is the last full day of the second week of camp. My mind can't wrap around the time that has flown by. This time next week, I'll be avoiding to prepare to pack up and go home. I've learned so much while I've been down here. I've made new friends, new memories, new sweat records. I've accomplished more than I imagined. Coming down here, I was hoping to improve my Spanish, have an awesome summer and an even more incredible tan. Of course, with some God thrown in there. I've learned one Spanish word, my vocabulary might be worse than before because annunciation isn't a big thing down here. My tan is pretty pathetic and you can play "connect-the-dots" with my bites. My summer has been incredible and God has been in every step I've taken. Being here, I've broken down my own barriers and opened up to unsuspecting people. My generalizations about people have been cast to the side and I now can look for the real person, not just the mask they wear. I've also been able to strip away the masks I've been holding up to God. My own masks I've been hiding behind, and the ones that I've hidden Him behind. As C. S. Lewis said, "I do not want my image of God, I want God." And I'm now on the road to finding Him for who He is, not who I make Him to be.

My favorite part of camp is seeing the counselors interact with the campers. All of the counselors have been doing a fantastic job. They get crazy, energetic, hyped up when they're about to fall over from exhaustion. They encourage, inspire, and help their campers. It's been a blessing to get to know the counselors better and to see what they've over come to get where they are and how they choose to spend their summer; teaching kids about our Father.

Being here, as cheesy as it may seem, has been a life-changing summer. I haven't taken a hot shower since I've gotten here, and I haven't wanted to once. I also haven't been able to have my phone. So when I get it back, I don't even know what I'll do with it. I put on anti-itch cream like lotion, and I cut all my shirts into tank tops. I sweat so much; and  I don't have any clue what's going on in the world, but I can't imagine being anywhere else. There's no where else in the world I'd rather spend my last few weeks of summer. This is my fourth trip to Puerto Rico, my first camp experience, and I don't want to go home next week.

-Maddie (Madison, Madeline, Madds) Poole! 

Mi papá es un oso.

This is MacKenzie. This year I had the opportunity to spend the summer at Campamento del Caribe and after my first week of summer camp I am amazed at the many ways the Lord had shown his presence.

 I came down to Puerto Rico to take pictures and videos of the camp and put together videos for the end of the week. I began by filming some footage of the counselors at 3 am while they were all peacefully sleeping. Theresa and Beth woke up each counselor to ask them each a random question, that became the introduction video for the campers to meet their counselors. I really began to feel like I was apart of something bigger after that. Then the first week of campers arrived and there was a crazy and unbelievable amount of energy around camp. The worship was incredible and I loved the enthusiasm the children sang and danced with. Also, the interaction of the counselors and campers was enjoyable to watch, as friendships were created and campers looked up to counselors as heroes. One night, the camper's activity was a mud relay and included a complete coating of mud on all the children participating. It was so fun to hear all the giggles and screams, as they all enjoyed each other and the mud.

   

 

 
  The numerous ways God has been working in my heart and on this camp in the last week are amazing, and I am so thankful to be able to have this opportunity for the summer.

Trampolines and crabs...

The Three Kings (celebrated January 6th here in Puerto Rico) brought my kids a trampoline this year.  Since then if you can't find them, most likely they are in the trampoline playing.  It has been used as a house, reading nook, jedi training arena and many many other things.  Here they are with their cousin Madelyn who is visiting for a while.

 It's been pouring outside for the last few days.  That just makes the trampoline more fun and slippery though.  

 

When the rain comes, crabs come out too.  Last night there were people with flashlights all along the road and the property in front of camp.  Sunny, our big goofy puppy, even chased a little old man back to his car.  So Jon, Julio and Fred (friends of ours) decided at midnight to go out crab catching.  They came back 45 minutes later with a bucketful of about ten big land crabs.  These crabs live in deep holes in the ground; and when their homes flood, they come crawling out.   

Logan woke me up this morning in the same crab catching mood as his daddy was the night before.  So first thing we went out and sure enough within five minutes had caught ourselves a little critter.