Escaping

Last year in about November ish, I was asked by my younger sister Bo if I wanted to chaperone her grade 6/7 class at an outdoor camp. It would be my job along with one other mother to sleep in the little chalet with the girls. I figured, hey I'm a big girl I can rough it.... I got more than I bargained for.

The camp that Bo's class went to is called Shekinah. It is about an hour outside of the city, and I had been there before, once in grade six for a two night stay, and again on I think two other occasions with Evan Hardys ESL class. So I knew what the facility was like. In the last few years they have added a new chalet, and because it is winter, I figured the girls would stay there and the boys would stay in the cabins. I was slightly dissapointed when we arrived at camp and we drove right past the big chalet and on to the older little chalet.

I got over my dissapointment quickly though, and helped to get everyone as settled as possible... throughout the events of the day, cross country skiing, sledding, being fed pudding, an apple and apple sauce by my sister, mission impossible, I marvled at how perfect everything was and how much fun everyone was having. When sitting at the top of the sledding hill I could see into the river valley, I could see EVERYTHING, and yet I could still hear what everyone at the bottom of the hill was talking about because their voices carried. When I walked back to the small chalet myself after playing mission impossible, to make 8 liters of hot chocolate for the kids, I could hear nothing except absolute silence.

As I walked past the big Chalet, I was slightly Envious, it was BEAUTIFUL, all wooden beams, light up by the lights inside. Absolutely perfect. But I found contentment in the small little chalet that we had for the night. And as the girls all settled down for the night, in front of the wood stove, on our foam mattresses, I thought of how much nicer it would be in the big chalet with more heat, better beds, and plumbing that wasnt tempramental.

But then I also thought of all of the fun that would be missed if we were in the big chalet. Instead of everyone having to work together to do the dishes, sleep in the same room (the girls anyways) and cooperate, we could have just been ourselves not gotten to know each other, and gone unchanged from the experience.

The next morning when snowshoeing, some of the equipment was broken, so I walked instead of snow shoed. I ran back to the chalet to get my camera, and then went to catch up with the kids. As I walked quickly towards where they were, I kept marveling at the perfection, and quiet of everything. And I couldnt help but start to sing.

Although it would have been WONDERFULLY nice to be in the chalet, I had just as good, if not a BETTER time in the litte chalet.

In essence, I was shown that just because I dont have the BEST, of everything, doesnt mean I can't make the BEST of anything. And in truth I realized that Instead of working and striving for everything new and better and the BEST, I need to sometimes stop and see what else is out there. Smell the roses, walk and enjoy the view, and just live the life I was ment to live.

I can't rush life no matter how hard I try, when I try to do things my way, I just get in the way of the bigger things that are planned for me.