Spring Break XI

But wait Kristin, you're not in school anymore...how do you still get a spring break? Well, last week was my students' spring break and Young Life took a trip to Ocklawaha, FL to Southwind. To be honest, I was a little freaked out by the thought of going on this trip with Young Life. I only had a couple of students from 1st Pres going on the trip and I had no idea what would be going on the whole week. All I knew was that it would be sunny, warm, and there would be lots of students from GPS, McCallie, SMMHS, and Baylor. So we loaded up 4 buses earrrrrrly Sunday morning and headed south...

As much as I want to, I'm going to refrain from giving you a play by play of the week. But here are some highlights:

Paige Carmichael and Kelsey Keef. I seriously don't know what I would have done last week without these girls. We clicked (almost) right away (following my super awkward introduction of myself and some mild facebook stalking) Both of these girls are Juniors at GPS and were the high school leaders in my cabin of 7th grade GPS girls. We were able to go from cracking up laughing at ourselves, to more serious questions, then back to laughing again. I loved it and can't wait to spend more time with these girls.
Cabin Time with the girls: Even though Paige, Kelsey, and I are pretty certain our girls thought we were all sorts of awkward, I really genuinely enjoyed our cabin times. Every night, we would have Club--which is singing, some worship songs, games/skits, and then Jonathan Drinkwine would give a talk. Each talk gave a clear presentation of the Gospel that was perfect for both non Christians and mature Christians alike. After Club, we would go back to our cabins and have 45 minutes just to ourselves. We sat in a circle, passed around tons of junk food, and would ask questions that helped them to think about the talk they had just heard. As the week went on, we gave them time to ask us questions of their own. I loved hearing what these girls thought and really am hopeful that we will have a chance to keep up. Each of the girls really wanted to have a "Dragonfly" reunion in a few weeks, and even try to meet up on a regular basis to keep dialogue like we had in cabin time! The Skits: Bryan Spillman, Robby Painter, and another guy (can't remember his name! how terrible am I?!) "killed it!" when it came to the skits. It was so apparent that they put a lot of time and thought into what would make the kids laugh. They did such a great job of making the skits interactive, the right amount of time, and hilarious. I know I'm going to be quoting their one liners every time I'm around anyone that went on Southwind (and even the people that didn't come either) Themed Everything!: As broad as this topic is, I don't think I could narrow it down! It was so so fun to have a Luau, Princess and Warrior Night, the Banquet Night, and Bonfire and Pool Party. They had everything so well planned and themed! The skits tied in so well with whatever we were doing--mud war, Pool Olympics, the day at the beach, and even when we went the Wet 'n Wild for the day.
I was so encouraged by the mission of Young Life. They truly embrace the "come as you are" mentality and I just realized how poorly the church (as a whole) does that. They presented the Gospel so clearly and gave a chance for kids to laugh, play, and just be kids and see that Christianity is not boring! To be completely honest, it was a little hard for me to see 13 year old girls running around in barely there shorts and next to nothing bikinis, but that was just the overly modest mother in me that had to bite her tongue. The week was such an eye-opening, encouraging, and absolutely exhausting week but so worth it. I really would love the chance to go again next year.