Pico Escondido is a Young Life camp where we stayed in cabin bunk beds and had acres of area for fun! The days were structured the same with morning testimonies, afternoon adventures, and evening worship. Each was a mix of American and Dominicans teenagers and watching them grow together was wonderful. This was the wonderful view I had from our cabin porch that I just had to look at every day there..oh darn!
The mornings were spent giving testimonies and showing the Dominican kids that no matter what has happened to you or what you have been through it is always possible to seek help in God. Each student there was at a different relationship level with God so we tried to help them see Him from all angles. It was a neat way to reach the students because it gave them hope where it might not have been there before.
The early afternoons were spent doing some kind of adventure activity! The first one I got to do was rock climbing! I got the easy climb down but the harder ones were more of a challenge!
The early afternoons were spent doing some kind of adventure activity! The first one I got to do was rock climbing! I got the easy climb down but the harder ones were more of a challenge!
My wonderful cabin leader, Rosemary, and I were lucky enough to have Angela in our cabin. She loved food more than I do and always was making us laugh at one of her many silly things. However, unfortunately the rock climbing wall was not her favorite activity!
My favorite activity, however, was hiking to the waterfall and getting to jump off the rocks! The water was freezing at first but once you jumped in we got used to it instantly and it was a blast!
Not only did we rock climb and hike waterfalls in the afternoons, but we also had a challenge course where we had to trust others as we fell off a wall and hoped they would catch us and work together as a team for various activities. After the morning activities we had lunch and what would you know but each day we had rice, beans, and chicken! Yum! By the end of the week I was really missing my vegetable and grandma's garden! After lunch it was sports galore! We played soccer volleyball, basketball, Ping-Pong, attempted games of baseball, and also had some girly bracelet making in there. It was wonderful to be able to bond with the campers through sports during this time as well as sneak in time for the occasional much needed nap!
The evenings were full of music and worship followed by cabin time and an evening event! Some songs were in English and some were in Spanish even though most of the Americans knew no Spanish. Or only 'un pocquito' as they would say because they knew hola and adios and thought that was enough! However, even though the music was in a different language it did not matter because the feeling of the music was still just as powerful. It brought to light we were all there together, of different nationalities, yet still worshipping the same God in the same way.
After worship we had cabin time where each leader would meet with their cabin and stimulate the camers' minds about the message for the night. Rosemary and I were in a cabin with four girls and although she spoke little English and I spoke little Spanish it was amazing how we were still able to connect with each other and even more so to the four girls in our cabin. After we would question them they would question us which not only caught me off guard but let me to difficult explanations and sharing. I expected to help the girls grow in their faith, but little did I know they would help me realize even more.
Once cabin time was over there was an evening event! We had a pool party, dance party, country fair, and games to bond more (and tire them out before bed!). No matter what time we went to bed two of the girls in my cabin would wake up at 6:00 and expect everyone else to wake up too so sleeping was a luxury.
Week 1 at Camp Discovery was full of learning, adventure, and growth and I would not of had it any other way. It was a wonderful way to relate to the campers through activities they already like doing. I was ready for a long rest at the end of this week and extremely curious to begin the second week of adventure!
The evenings were full of music and worship followed by cabin time and an evening event! Some songs were in English and some were in Spanish even though most of the Americans knew no Spanish. Or only 'un pocquito' as they would say because they knew hola and adios and thought that was enough! However, even though the music was in a different language it did not matter because the feeling of the music was still just as powerful. It brought to light we were all there together, of different nationalities, yet still worshipping the same God in the same way.
After worship we had cabin time where each leader would meet with their cabin and stimulate the camers' minds about the message for the night. Rosemary and I were in a cabin with four girls and although she spoke little English and I spoke little Spanish it was amazing how we were still able to connect with each other and even more so to the four girls in our cabin. After we would question them they would question us which not only caught me off guard but let me to difficult explanations and sharing. I expected to help the girls grow in their faith, but little did I know they would help me realize even more.
Once cabin time was over there was an evening event! We had a pool party, dance party, country fair, and games to bond more (and tire them out before bed!). No matter what time we went to bed two of the girls in my cabin would wake up at 6:00 and expect everyone else to wake up too so sleeping was a luxury.
Week 1 at Camp Discovery was full of learning, adventure, and growth and I would not of had it any other way. It was a wonderful way to relate to the campers through activities they already like doing. I was ready for a long rest at the end of this week and extremely curious to begin the second week of adventure!