Back to the beach

For the second time in less than a week, Ron and Cathy came by in their efficient vehicle with the rear camera on their way to the coast. This time, I was the only one who got in and the three of us headed to Camp Magruder to volunteer as Family Friends for the Salem Creation Vacation, a camp for low-income families that is similar to the one I deaned in July.

Another difference was that our blue skies were gone and the sun hid nearly the entire time behind a think blanket of gray. And on the third of our four days there, rain poured down from that gray like you would not believe! Nap time was a bit longer that day and the craft cabin a bit more crowded, but the rain did not keep the families from having fun. Some kids (including one hardy boy from my assigned family) donned a life jacket and braved the freezing water to wave jump, even as the rain pelted them from the side. Afterward, many of them swam in the lake (which was relatively warm), waited in line for the big swing, and made sand candles. Another of the boys from my family joined me and some others for a wet dune walk on which we spied salamanders and beetles, ate huckeberries from the bush, raced down (and then back up!) the dune, and enjoyed gorgeous views of the ocean and Tillamook Bay, even as the rain poured down. I stood by the fire with some hot cocoa for a while after that one.

On our last day, the sun came out again and I spent most of the morning out in the lake on a rowboat or kayak. My assigned family was awesome and I loved talking with them as we ate our delicious camp food and decided which fun thing to do next. Instead of being charged with making sure that everthing was going as well as possible and that everyone was having a great time, which was my task as a dean for the last Creation Vacation (a job that I love), it was wonderful this time to focus on one family, getting to know them and helping them have the best time possible in their short days together at camp.

One thing that turned out to be a huge blessing for me is that the family preferred to not be in any photos, so I put my camera away (hard to imagine, no?), and was able to be fully present with them the whole time. I love taking pictures but I also love not taking pictures. In this instance, it allowed me to just be there. I played on the playground, dug in the sand, rowed boats, held hands, did all the motions at campfire, untangled fishing wire (I even put corn on the hook--who knew fish liked corn?), did dishes, carried luggage, held umbrellas over little heads, laid masking tape lines for a game of poop deck. And all these things required my two hands.

Thankfully, I also had some time for quiet walks through the woods and along the beach. Did I mention that the Oregon Coast is beautiful in any weather? It really is.

A rainbow!