The sun was out and shining as the Kindle campers embarked on their first full day here at camp. On Monday, the campers got familiar with their fellow cabinmates and counsellors, and yesterday they got familiar with the daily routine here at camp.
The first activity of every day is called Morning Watch. At Morning Watch, campers meet up with their Big Brothers and Sisters to find a spot by the lake or elsewhere in nature to talk about God. The theme of camp this year is Truth, and during Morning Watch the campers go through a Morning Watch booklet that refers to different passages in the Bible that talk about God’s truth. It’s a great way for kids to get to know their Bible’s, and spend time getting to know God in the midst of the beautiful scenery at Red Rock.
After Morning Watch we try to continue the theme of getting to know God by doing some teambuilding and interactive activities in what we call Discovery. Blindfolds are certainly the supply of choice as we see here where one cabin is learning about trust while not being able to see the path ahead.
Discovery is great for these campers because not only do they learn about God, but they also grow closer together as friends and as a cabin group as well.
Before lunch it was time for the kids to go back to their skills from yesterday. With all of the rules and orientation out of the way, the kids were able to get right into it, and it sure looked like the campers enjoyed what they were doing.
The climbing skill picked up from where they left off on Monday, as they began bouldering while they were waiting their turn for the big wall. The object of the bouldering wall is to climb sideways instead of up, and since it’s hardly off the ground and has pea gravel below, they don’t need a harness or anything. It’s a good way to pass they time while you wait.
The water skiers were very excited for Tuesday’s skill, because it meant that there would be a lot more time to ski than the busier first day. They all sure look excited, and hopefully we’ll be able to get some action shots later in the week.
The sports skill has been quite active already this week, as they seem to be all over the place trying out different sports, and keeping their heart rates going. On Tuesday they had a big soccer game on the field, on top of spending their free time hanging out on the basketball court shooting hoops.
The archery skill also looks to be in full force after the second day of skills. The first day of archery is usually spent learning the parts of the bow and just learning how to shoot properly, but once the second day comes a long the campers usually get the hang of it. It may not be bulls-eye’s every time, but things look to be going a lot smoother for them, which makes it a lot more fun.
Since the weather was a lot nicer on Tuesday, the Water Ex skill was even happier than they were yesterday. The kids in the Water Ex skill play games and just spend free time playing in the water, you really can’t go wrong with that.
However, it was not just the Water Ex skill who got to enjoy the water, as every afternoon we have a two hour block called Swim, Boat, and Tuck, where half campers can spend time on the beach and on the waterfront while the other half get to eat some candy! Since the campers do so much throughout the day, they seem to really count on that sugar rush to keep them going, and it’s certainly one of the campers favorite times of the day.
After the campers sugar rush wears off, they head over to their cabins for FOB, which stands for Feet On Bed. The hope is that this is basically just nap time, but this early in the week the campers tend to still have more energy to give, and sitting still in their beds just isn’t an option. Which is why right after FOB we have Special Program, which on Tuesday was called Pike’s Peak.
The object of Pike’s Peak is to try to fill up the other teams garbage can with water. But realistically, it ends up turning into one massive water fight. The best part about this game is that we bring out the fire hose for the occasion, which ends up being a little too much of a power trip for the one holding the hose.
In this case, Mike was the one with the hose. And he made sure he put it to good use.
While half of the group was playing Pike’s peak, the other half was having a sandcastle building competition. These are great because you get to see the creativity and the artistic abilities of every cabin. One of the girls cabins made a very impressive alligator.
The alligator was one of the more artistic creations, but one of the guys cabins really upped the ante in the creativity department.
They didn’t just burry this guy in the sand, but they also made a city around him, making him the “sleeping giant.” And when he awoke, he destroyed everything in his path, and clearly he also got incredibly sandy.
After Special Program, it was supper time, and I really don’t have to say all that much about it other than we ate pizza, and what kid doesn’t like pizza? Everyone likes pizza. It was delicious.
We rounded out the evening with another Chapel service where we sang songs and learned about Jesus. Yesterday, our speaker Lorne decided to bring a “friend” of his to speak instead of him. That friend was Peter from the Bible, who told us more about who Jesus is, and what it was like to hang out with him. The kids were very attentive and quite engaged, and it’s clear that they are learning more and more about Jesus every day.
Unfortunately we are still having problems with our internet out here, as it is keeps going on and off throughout the day. We hope to have these posts up before lunch every day, but with the internet the way it is it’s just not really a possibility. We’re glad people are still reading, and we hope everything gets figured out before the week is done. Thanks for reading and we’ll talk to you again tomorrow!
For more pictures of Kindle week, sign into our eCamp account for photo galleries and other camp resources. Sign in information would have been sent with your registration packages.
