“I’m in a hurry to get things done,
I rush and a rush until life’s no fun,
All I really gotta do is live and die,
But I’m in a hurry and I don’t know why”

The camp chorus sang this earlier today and it’s a song I really like. Today was an odd mix of the serious and the humorous. The theme for the day was Clowning Around, as Alpha has had a circus going on all week. Council circle tonight had us all laughing, and I must say that it was led by two of my favorite charismatic counselors.

After the fun, we were all heading to our Grow Group Reflections. Now, to clarify, a grow group is a group that all Alpha campers are placed in, with all the other campers of their age. Being that we “age out” at twenty-one, we twenty year olds took our reflection time together tonight with mixed feelings. This summer, and one more… that’s a sad thought, and I’ll tell you why.

I started state camping when I was eighteen, and started Alpha I camping only a year ago when I was nineteen. I came in and met all these people who had grown up together at this camp, and I was the new guy. In no time at all, I came to realize, though, that growing up in 4-H… learning the value of critical thinking, compassion and loyalty, service, and healthy living… the things that 4-H stands for… I had so much in common with these otherwise perfect strangers.

Tonight, I reflected with those same people, who are hardly strangers anymore, but kindred spirits, who have learned the same values and lessons I have. People who have experienced similar milestones to the ones I remember, hold a special place in my heart, and 4-H is filled to the brim with people that I’m happy to refer to as family. Whether they’re still “strangers” to me or not… well, I think I’ll end this blog with another set of lyrics.

“Well I’ve got some friends,
Some that I hardly know,
But we’ve had some times,
I wouldn’t trade for the world,
We chase these days down with talks of,
The places that we will go.”