Blog

The last day of camp was a flurry of activity with an under-current
 of sadness. It seems just as the students and the Americans gel as
 a camp and as a team it is time to shut it down and leave. Our
campers are very emotional as a rule anyway so graduation day is
always FULL of tears-knowing we may never see these kids again adds
 a good dose of sobriety to the event. We had planned all week to jump
 in the fountain after graduation but since the temps are now in the
 60's we decided that would be a bad idea!

Tonight was filled with dinners out with students and the realization
 that we have to actually pack up everything in our rooms into one
 44lb suitcase. Yikes! We have made a lot of awesome connections,
learned a lot, grown a lot- we've been humbled. We have learned to
work together under one banner- a young woman from Armenia, a pair of
 70 year olds, a couple of teenagers, some random Buckeyes, leaders and
 followers, world travellers and  fearful beginners, college kids, moms,
 teachers- all here to love and to serve. What a privelege! Tonight
Angie and Jane were treated to a heaping platter of chicken feet and
 I got a plate of bloody fish, newly freed from his tank in the lobby
 and destined for the HotPot on my table! Because of love, we grabbed
 our chopsticks and jumped right in! Were we out of our comfort zone?
 You bet! Jane is a 63 year old lady from NJ, who came to serve- and
 serve she did, one crusty chicken foot at a time!

It is wellllll past my bedtime so I'll sign off! Please remember our
graduation Thurs at 10 am which is Weds night at 10 pm for you! Also,
 ask for efficient packing and travel and a blessed time of rest in
BJ. This is when we do a lot of wrapping up the pieces and processing
 all we've seen. We also meet with some Very Special Guests who never
fail to bless and amaze us. Tell you more later (wink). Nighty night
 from a chilly mountain on the other side of the globe!  CALJJJ