Lessons learned...

Alright, my sister has inspired me with all her lists, so I thought I would give it a whirl... I will call my list, "lessons learned from spending a week at the beach with 70 something teenagers!" In other words,what us adults can learn from our youth about how to live life :)

1. More is always better! If we are traveling and stop at a truck stop, it is always better to buy the biggest drink available, if they sell jerky by the yard it is a must have and it is always important to see who can spend all their money before we even reach our destination!

2. Sleep is not important! It is better to be the energizer bunny and keep going...

3. You can live on Pop tarts alone! You might be starving, yet if it doesn't look right, smell right, forget even tasting to see if it tastes right... thank goodness Kevin had provided each condo with breakfast foods!

4. Life should always have a dramatic "flair' to it... it is always the "worse" thing that could happen, life is over as we know it, there is never a silver lining!

5. It is all about the dress and a little bling bling! It doesn't matter what the dress looks like, if it belongs to someone else, it must be cool. I honestly don't know if a couple of our girls will ever see all their clothes and jewelry again!!! The price you pay for having good taste!

6. The best time to fight is when you are worn out and worn down! That is when you are full of meaningless comments, lack great sense and would rather act first, think later! Fun times!

7. It is cool to be the rule breaker... There is always one who plunges ahead and brings the one thing on the list, that was suppose to be left at home. Of course nobody turns him in because they all want to use it!

8. Fighting over a boy without a name is great fun! In other words, forget meeting the guy, or finding out anything about him, just continue to admire him from afar and bicker over "who gets him." Wow! This one really takes me back to my teenager years!

9. It is important to put appearance over feelings. It is thought to be more important to "look cool" than to show how you really feel. Cockiness is the thread that holds a group together!

10. Live in the moment! There are never any consequences to any actions!

Truth is I enjoyed camp and hanging out with the kids. I might look back with smiles and make a silly list at their expense, but if anything, it takes me back to my own youthful days... Wonderful childhood experiences, friends and yes, DRAMA!!!

Life is full of possibilities! It is hard at the age of thirteen, sixteen or eighteen to hold on to God's promises and know that he has special plans for each of his children. Yet, I can look back at the age of thirty seven, and know beyond a doubt, I was always in his care... there would be no way I would be sitting here writing this today if I wasn't.

I look back a mistakes made, fears and hurts and almost laugh at how some of them seem so insignificant now. So, yes we can learn from watching our youth. The troubles I may have today, will one day be small and almost forgotten. We really should live in the moment... but only if we let Christ sit beside us!