where i have been

For the past week I have been up on the mountain top with one hundred and three junior high campers (including Wylie,)  twenty-seven  hard working college and high school age counselors and interns, half a dozen kitchen staff who made meals too yummy to be called camp food, a fun and pun loving  (and exceedingly kind and generous) priest, two dedicated camp directors, one great friend,  four dogs, countless spiders, no high-speed internet or wireless access and Miles Greer himself.
The camp took place at Camp Mitchell, and our theme was #OccupyHope.On Sunday we anchored ourselves to the mountain and begin the #OccupyHope movement that carried us through the week.We yarn bombed (=finding hope in unexpexcted places)We chalk-graffiti-ed giant blackboards (=speaking out for hope)Played a rousing (and wet) game of Capture the Hope (=our version of Capture the Flag, an example of not giving in to hopelessness, fighting on for hope.)We learned how to work together as teams to overcome obstacles-and bring hope to others.We raised the flag of Hope over camp.We wrote messages of hope on The Van in order to encourage those in our homeless communities to not give up hope, and to urge all those who see The Van to help care for our neighbors.We practiced seeking hope when all seems lost.We prayed, sang, shared, and celebrated the  HOPE that Christ has given us at every turn.We laughed, cried, played, ate, slept (a little) and sweated (a lot) together day after day.We shared the sharpie love and sang a ton of  really silly songs. We went on night missions to the pool, composted our scraps, weeded the garden, drove a yarn-bombed golf cart, walked in the wildflowers and ate way too many late night snacks. I got to watch my boys blossom in new ways, I completely forgot all about blog statistics and book sales, got to share my love of camp life with Sweet Man and felt God's abiding love wash over me time and time again, as a hundred and forty adults and campers sang these words, in the tradition of Taize, as we went to bed.
Bless the Lord my soul, and bless God's holy name Bless the Lord my soul, who leads me into life.  (psalm 104:1)

I seriously think I could live at camp. (But I would need to fix the wireless issue.)