Five days ago, I went into this cabin leader thing nervous and excited.
I thought of my experience in junior high, and how much i loved my cabin leader/dorm leader (super summer was different), kristi.
I went in not knowing any of my girls. All I had was a pink list that told me I was in cabin 1857, and had six girls (one of which who switched cabins). So the remaining five and I hung out for the week. It started off well, they gelled fairly well together. Sydney began to break out of her shell, and Marleah and Lindsey asked more questions.
One day in, I felt like I had known them for weeks. These girls were so much fun, and they adored me. It’s an incredible feeling. We faced the high ropes course along with our fears of heights, played together on the aqua jumps, and even though we were split for the low edge, shared our team work experiences together.
I loved hearing them all, especially Marleah speak about how she looked forward to the debrief time, and her quiet time. How their eyes lit up when something connected. They glowed. They raved about how much they loved listening to Eric, the speaker, talk.
Some combination hit right. And even now, I wonder what might have happened had I told Angie, “No.” Because last night, during Eric’s invitation. God got through to Marleah, Sydney, and Lindsey. Eric asked the leaders to head to the back where students could approach them.
Instantly, Marleah came back to me and hugged me. She told me that she had just asked Jesus into her heart for the first time. She thanked me for being there for her, for helping her along. That was by far the MOST incredible experience of my life. I was able to hold them as they cried this mixture of happy sad tears, and celebrate at the same time. Later, Lindsey and Sydney told me they asked Jesus into their hearts as well. And Olivia realized how badly she needed strong friends to push her towards God.
I was changed. This time, not by a direct thing the speaker said, but because of these girls that I learned to love so deeply in five days. They had the ability to make and break my heart. I would do anything to protect them, and still will. It’s a strange feeling, but an exciting one too.
leader beats camper any day.
