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!