Before every Club or Campaigners the leaders first gather together to eat dinner and go over the plan. Sometimes it's just pizza (which is fine by me) but usually a parent brings us dinner. Tonight's meal might go down in history as the best thing we've ever eaten. Mr. Bock brought us smoked BBQ ribs, twice baked potato skins, watermelon/feta/mint salad, homemade chips and salsa and cookie brownies topped with whip cream and strawberries. It was a feast. It took all my self control to stop going back for more of the potatoes and chips and salsa.
Soon 7th and 8th graders started showing up for Club. The Bradley's, KCraig, Blaire and Brock Trusty, Jake, Rachel, Lauren and I got to greet the kids and hang out before we officially got started.
I got to have almost all of these girls in class this year. Getting to be one of their Wyld Life leaders, and not just their teacher, is one of my favorite things. Having them learn about writing is important, but in the long run it's so much more important to share faith and life together.
I love that Wyld Life is about friendships. Alex and Blaire, Lauren and Sar, Emily and Hannah, Gavin and Danny. These relationships are each so precious to witness.
I'm so thankful that we have Wyld Life in HSE. Thankful that we believe working with 11, 12 and 13 year-olds is a valuable use of our time, energy, heart and resources. These kids matter.
It started pouring down rain right after the group picture. I bet you won't be too surprised that kids immediately ran out into the rain. These boys were trying to get as wet as possible, even standing under the waterfall of rain coming from the gutters.
Brock and Blaire were our emcees for the night, explaining the line up and all of the games.
First we each had a Post-It note identity stuck to our back. 20 Questions style, we had to figure out who we were and who our partner in the room was.
The we each made a duct tape anklet, sticky side out, for the next game. Everyone started with three Post-It notes and ran around the room trying to stick the paper square to someone's ankle. My proudest moments were when I got Jake Conrad and Sam Huston.
Then we split up 7th graders v. 8th graders to make paper airplanes out of Post-It notes. We had to fly our planes into hula hoop target Jake was holding for our team.
The next game was ridiculous and so amazing. The 7th grade girls, 7th grade boys, 8th grade girls and 8th grade boys each picked a tribute from their team to be covered in Post-It notes head to toe.
Emily, Danny, Allison and Garrett were almost unrecognizable by the time we were finished.
Then we played Shake It Off and each covered person had to dance until they shook off all of the Post-It notes.
We also figured out that Post-It notes work pretty well as confetti too. How happy is this?
The last thing we did was Post-It note murals. Each group had to make something that reflected camp.
8th grade boys' Wyld Life cabin
7th grade boys' campfire
7th grade girls' campfire roasting marshmallows
8th grade girls' cabin and lake
Jess delivered the Club Talk tonight. She talked about how we use Post-It notes to label things just like people label one another. Sometimes those labels tell us that someone is a swimmer, sister, musician, neighbor, mathemetician or singer. Then we use labels to describe the kind of person someone is like kind, angry, patient, complainer, creative, honest, outgoing. But God has a whole other set of labels for us-- beloved, worth dying for, beautifully made, loved, forgiven.
For most of us, small groups are the best part of the night. Together we talk about what we heard in the Club Talk, what we learned about Jesus and what he says about us. I'm so thankful for these nights together.
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