"The Three Questions"

I love to read.  I’m not as avid about it as I’d like to be, but when I find the opportunity to sit down with a book I often find myself engulfed until the book’s completion.  Over the past few years, I have noticed that I have committed myself to reading more books that are compiled with short stories.  I have found that I enjoy the quick read and I don’t feel so guilty when I have to put the book down and don’t pick it up for weeks at a time.

Through out the summer, I have had the opportunity to meet so many different people and have had the pleasure of spending quality time with a good amount of them.  A few weeks ago, I got the chance to spend some great quality time with our new ranch camp director and in the short amount of time we had together; I felt she brought a breath of fresh air that I was in desperate need of.  We talked about life—past, present, and future and the hopes within each of these times.  One such topic was about our favorite reads and the want to share them with each other.  She has hopes to start a book club with a group of people once she settles in and I was all over that idea.  So after she left, I went home, feeling inspired to read and picked up one of my favorite books of short stories by Leo Tolstoy.

Of all the great stories, my favorite is “The Three Questions”.  In this story there is a king that has three questions that he wants to have answered—What is the best time to do each thing?  Who are the most important people to work with?  And, what is the most important thing to do at all times?  The king tries seeking advice from different people and in his quest to find the answers, a series of events happens that leads him to what he was hoping to find.

“Remember then that there is only one important time, and that time is now.  The most important one is always the one you are with.  And the most important thing is to do good for the one who is standing at your side.  For these are the answers to what is most important in this world.  This is why we are here.”

This story is always a great reminder of how I hope to lead my life.  Each person I encounter, and each person I have the pleasure of getting to know, is someone that has the ability to impact my life as much as I have the ability to do that for them.  And although I feel that the most important time is to be in the moment so as not to miss anything, the past and the future still define each of us.  There are lessons that have been learned and lessons to be learned.  And what I have found upon self reflection is that relationships are something that I cherish.  It’s important for me to try to give 110% in each one that I’m in whether it’s family, friends, romantic relationships, or new acquaintances.  

I often times struggle knowing that some relationships go by the wayside, but there is hope that the love and care that I was able to put in while I could will surpass our relationship and be shown toward others that they and myself encounter.  At the end of each day, I am thankful for the people that have been a blessing in my life and I pray for a future of many more relationships that I can grow and learn from.  But, until then…the most important time is now and the most important people are the ones that I’m surrounded by, and the most important thing to do is to love and care for those that are by my side.

Anticipation

"Oh the places you'll go! There is fun to be done! There are points to be scored. There are games to be won. And the magical things you will do with that ball will make you the winning-est winner of all."
-Dr. Seuss, Oh, the Places You'll Go!

I have always had a love for children and children's books, so when I have the opportunity, I love to be able to share with others stories that I adore so much. My audience as of late has been the 2012 summer staff and I have found that many of them have the same love for these stories as I do.

Each Sunday, I prepare the day camp teams that are leaving for the week with a devotion and prayer. Usually, the devotion is one that pertains to a certain topic in order to set them up for success during the week while I am away. This week I focused on anticipation and hope.

Skippyjon Jones by Judy Schachner has to be one of my favorite children's books of all time. So when I see an opportunity to use it as a teaching tool, I do! For those that have never read the story, it's about a Siamese cat that has a very vivid imagination. There are several books that chronicle his adventures but the original is my favorite. In this story he imagines that he is a chihuahua that is picked to save his friends from the awful Bumblebeeto Bandito who is out to steal their beans (his friends are beanie babies).

When I use this story to talk about hope and anticipation, I often read the story right up to the climax without finishing the rest of it. Often times the audience that is listening is so engulfed with what is about to happen that many of them sigh in disbelief that I'm not completing the story. This is where I get the opportunity to talk to them about the excitement, anticipation, and hope they are feeling at that moment.

As we head into our second half of the summer, staff are still excited for what is to come but they are also beginning to become tired. They put so much love and energy into what they are doing, we have to remind them to pace themselves and to rest and rejuvenate when they have the opportunity. For some this is easy and for others, a loving reminder of the hope of what is to come is enough to keep them excited and going.

Often times, these group devotions are as much for me as they are for the staff. The past two weeks of camp were the reminder that I needed to keep going. I had the opportunity to direct, rather than just oversee, our beach camp program as well as our onsite day camp program. And, being so hands on with the kids was something that refreshed me and gave me a joy that I hadn't felt in awhile. I love so much what I do, but when I find myself tired, often times the excitement and hope for what is to come wanes a bit. So, the weeks I got to direct helped me refocus and build that hope for the future.

God gives us time and he gives us talents and it's important to use these things to give others and ourselves hope for what is to come. I believe that God has called each staff member to be a part of our camp community this summer so we can go out and give hope to others. He has given us these "balls" to share and the "magical" things that staff are doing with them is not only making them winners but all those they encounter, as well.

As we head into our second half of the summer, I pray that God continues to give us the hope and anticipation that we need to continue touching the lives of all those we encounter. And, may our lives be touched through these encounters, as well.