The Sun is Setting

It has come to that time of the year again. The sun is setting on yet another summer of camp. We have one last week left, and it started today. While I have by no means processed this summer in all of it's entirety, I have been spending some time thinking back already.

Maybe thinking back is not a fair way to say it as much as looking forward, which focuses me backwards? What on God's green earth am I trying to say? Let me explain.

I have some exciting things coming up this fall:
1) I am going to be driving a bus for the local school. I will not be an every day driver with a route but a part time driver. This means I will do things like athletic trips and sub when they need me. The transportation director, Roger Cline, said I would be able to get a lot of shifts if I want them, so I said sure. This means I have to go to bus drivers training school. It is a 3 day class and I am sure it will be really interactive and super fun. Maybe not, but the $80.00 for a night of driving some kids around and watching a football game is ok by me.

2) I am also going to lifeguard at the Young Man's Christian Association one or two days a week. This is not really all that exciting, but my $30 a month membership will turn into a $30 a week paycheck and that is nice.

3) I started training for a half marathon today. Well, kinda. Today is day number one and I am supposed to stretch and do strength training. Once I get into the program my long runs will be on Saturdays so Sundays are recovery days. Not much of a workout today, but they will be coming.

So with these three things and one other (maybe more on that other later) I have been looking forward to this fall. What is interesting about this is that for the first time 100% of my attention in the summer was not focused on camp. I found myself going home at 7 not 9 or 10 at night. I came in at 8:45 not 8:00. Now I was not skipping out on my duties, I was just taking more time for myself and other things in my life. It feels odd to not have summer camp control all of my time. In some ways I have felt guilty about this, but in the end I think it is a healthy transition.

So I am in no way wishing the last week of summer camp away. Every day I am reminded of why I love my job, and tonight when I tell the campfire story I will once again be reminded of how much I love being with campers. Maybe it is because after 10+ summers of doing camp I know that great sunrises don't come without the sunset.

Keep up the fight