Next saturday… only a week from tomorrow, i’ll be speaking at our church’s ladies’ retreat. My topic title is “God works outside the box” under the umbrella theme of “God works in all things.” Obviously, I’m talking about my experiences at El Rancho. I knew I had a lot to say, but two nights ago I decided I would start typing it out so I’d be more organized. I worked on it last night and the night before, and so far I’m on my 12TH PAGE! And I haven’t even reached what I consider to be the heart of my adventures. Plus I’ve got a video to show, a short photo slideshow, a game, and other powerpoint slides. Apparently I need like 8 hours.

So…. maybe I’ll just write a novel.

last saturday, i was asked to come up to camp manatawny and instruct a youth group through our low ropes/challenge course. the additional perks being that i wasn’t on my own (mark wilson did it as well and i learned some cool stuff from him) and that we got paid!

in the morning, i was feeling really reeallly sick and didn’t want to go AT ALL, but they were counting on me and i just didn’t really have a choice to back out, so i hopped in my car with a sugar-free rockstar and an odwalla bar and made the drive up to camp.

camp is beautiful in the autumn. absolutely gorgeous. it’s almost a valley amongst the hills, so there are trees everywhere. i have a couple of pictures i left at work that i can post

so i got there with just enough time to catch up with mark quickly before we met the group. in my true camp style, i had made a game plan for us, but thankfully mark was cool with it, so i took it and ran.

something really cool is that if you work with a group you’ve never worked with before, you can pull from anything in your arsenal and kind of pick the best stuff out…. so we did an intro activity i learned from adam in nz, set up a contract like aimee taught me in nz, prayed, did an activity on the way up i learned here at manatawny during my first ropes training, then split into two groups to complete a couple of the elements up at the course.

my group did the wild woozy, then ann-a-log; mark’s did the mohawk walk. unfortunately, i still don’t quite know how the mohawk walk is run because i didn’t get to see it, but the activities i ran went over quite well.

finally, we brought the group together to the cool new seating area that some guy set up at camp for some kind of project. it reminds me a lot of the outdoor chapel at el rancho that i think an intern put together as a final project.

now, i didn’t mention it yet, but the group was awesome. like, fantastic. they did as they were asked, took things seriously that they were supposed to take seriously, had fun, and really worked together. but it got really good at the final breakdown. i didn’t have a plan for this bit, but i just put the question out there to the group to share if they were going to take something away from this experience or if they could make a spiritual connection.

they did. i don’t remember any of the earlier comments because they were all blown away by the final comment from the group. i’ve got to set this up first i guess with the activity…

first, all the teens paired up. then we explained to them that one person would be closing their eyes as they made their way up to the course. their partner would lead them. but the catch is that the partner can’t talk. the person who is blind can talk all that they want, but the person who is mute must communicate in some other way. most of them work out some kind of tapping system, i give them some info about how to safely guide them and we head up the hill. immediately, you start making it hard for them, cutting through the bush, over logs, under low-hanging branches, even making a circle…. usually they haven’t quite prepared how to communicate these things and it brings up good talking points about trusting their partner even though we seemed to be going the wrong way. we swap halfway, so both get a chance to experience both aspects of the activity.

which brings us back to the teenager, who couldn’t have been more than 16 years old, who said,

remember when we did the mute and the blind activity? when i was blind, it’s a good metaphor for how God leads us. because He doesn’t lead us out loud, or through dreams and visions…. he’s more like a gentle tap or nudging. and even when we feel like He isn’t with us, or we’re going through difficult places, He’s always there.

we pretty much ended there. seriously, THIS is why i love camp. i think that people are often put in a good place to experience God at camp. there’s the nature aspect, and the fact that you are away from the distractions of everyday life, the people you come with and experience things with…. not that God can’t talk to us anywhere, and He does, but i think camp provides a wonderful environment for us to grow closer to Him.

…. as i miss el rancho and everyone in new zealand, i’m thankful for experiences like this that bring el rancho and manatawny closer together and remind me that God isn’t done with me yet.

pix from the grand canyon

i’m thinking about putting my blog to rest. now that i’m home from my adventures, i’m not sure the minutia of my life warrants chronicling it online for the world to read. but doesthatcomeingold.com has to live on, so i’m trying to figure out what i have to share with the world. if anyone has any thoughts, send them my way…

if you are interested, or wish to critique, my current portfolio is back online at doesthatcomeingold.com/portfolio

most of my AJJ work is no longer online, so it’s tough to show my web design work, but there are a couple of interesting projects on there.

in case you didn’t know, because i have been lying a little low… i am back in new jersey. i left el rancho with lots of tears in the middle of july, and came home two days before camp manatawny started.

it was my SEVENTH year in a row at junior high 1 (6th and 7th grades) and it was a great one. only 66 kids, 12 cabins, and the kids were amazing. not one problem! lots of fun games, thanks to aaron and tim; lots of fun times with old friends and the best worship i’ve heard from this age group ever!

the following week i chilled.

the next week i was off to indiana, driving with my mom. we stayed with her brother and it was a fun time. i got to see paige…

and then last week, i was back at manatawny, lifeguarding and counseling the 6-8 year olds. crazy stuff. so exhausting, but so fun. they all call me mommy now.

now i’m just trying to re-establish a life in jersey. i’m looking for a grad school (and program of study), a job, and a house.

haha. smooth sailing, right?

if you live in a place long enough, yes, you will truly experience those things that make that place unique. and tonight, i had my second ever tim tam slam. it’s kind of addictive.

tim tams are this lovely biscuit (cookie) that’s like these two light airy pieces with a chocolately fudgy center, and the whole thing is covered in chocolate. they’re very popular here. think tim tams = oreos. but they actually taste good.

step 1: prepare a cup of hot chocolate or hot milo

step 2: bite one corner off your tim tam. enjoy.

step 3: bite the opposite (diagonal) corner off your tim tam. enjoy. this is the only part of the biscuit you’ll properly eat

step 4: stick one of these corners into your hot chocolate.

step 5: stick the other corner in your mouth.

step 6: drink the hot chocolate through your tim tam straw.

step 7: try to eat most of the cookie before it dissolves.

it’s hilarous. first, your hot chocolate surprises you when it comes up so easily, and it’s even MORE chocolatey than usual. then, the cookie dissolves immediately, and it’s this gooey, melted chocolatey mess.

if only you could try it.

but don’t take my word for it, read the wikipedia.

so i’m sitting in a backpackers in auckland. not really where i’m supposed to be, but oh well! i flew to auckland today from sydney on aerolineas argentinas. like they seem to do, aerolineas decided to delay the flight by 3 hours. so instead of getting to auckland at 3.00, with plans to go to church and stay over at this very nice girl’s flat, i got in at 6.20, so it was 7.30 by the time i got to the city. it being a sunday, buses weren’t running, and so i couldn’t even get to previously mentioned very nice girl’s flat (since she was out with a friend). so i find myself staying for the first time ever, in a backpackers, by myself. er, sort of by myself, since i’m sharing a room with maybe 4 other girls. it’s a growing experience, right?! :0)

anyway, it’s been a wonderful WEEK IN SYDNEY! i flew over with reuben, and we met up with rachel and christine for a busy week in an exciting new place. here are some of the fabulous things we did:

• took a tour of the governor’s house
• visited the chinese gardens
• rode the monorail
• went to the zoo
• took a ferry to manly
• stayed overnight in bondi beach
• did a coastal walk in bondi
• saw choirs/orchestras at the opera house
• saw boy a at the sydney film festival
• went to the botanic gardens, and saw the bats!
• fed and petted kangaroos
• cuddled a koala
• swam 26 laps in the olympic center pool
• walked across the harbor bridge (twice)
• shopped
• rode the wild mouse at luna park
• went to the hillsong church

i think that’s most of it anyway

so funny story about yesterday. we’re at the chinese gardens and they have this place where they rent you chinese costumes to wear/take pictures in around the park. we’re kind of poking our heads in, and the guy ushers us in. before i know it, he’s put a gold robe on me and is fussing with my hair. i figure that before i walked in, the other 3 had given him the $10 to dress me up, but no, he just somehow picked me. so as i roll my eyes, they all take pictures of me and drag me around the gardens. apparently, it was everyone’s favorite part of the trip. apparently, it was funny because i’m into dressing up…. and taking pictures…. and having fun.   it was RIDICULOUS! most of the pictures are pretty dumb because i’m rolling my eyes, sticking my tongue out, or just laughing at how ridiculous this whole thing is. but anyway, it was an experience for sure!

so check one more country off the list for me. australia, seen it.

but that means there are only 3 weeks until i leave the beautiful land of the long white cloud. 2 weeks to plan for camp, one week of camp, and then i’m offffffffffffff!

go look at my sydney pictures.

so this weekend, i got to organize a “midgets camp”

that’s a camp for 6-8 year olds. staying overnight at camp. 40 of them.

hahaha. it was a BLAST! these kids were so good, and just soooo cute! they loved taking wagon rides, decorating their own cookies, singing ‘baby shark’ and ‘if you love Jesus” and hanging out in their cabins.

my favorite moment of the weekend goes like this. i go down to the chat room, and see a leader and two girls sitting on the sofa, so i go over to talk with them. one of the girls has a Bible in her hands and she is flipping frantically through it. I ask “what are you looking for?” and she says “Jesus”

be still my heart.

one by one, my friends are being RIPPED away from me.

and i don’t mean my acquaintances, i mean my closest friends are all leaving and not being replaced!

jon.

christine.

paul.

aimee.

rachel.

birte.

rachel was 2 days ago. birte was today. i know the wellington airport like the back of my hand… and i am getting a bit sad.

so i’m shopping in otaki, about 20 minutes up the road. i’m paying for a tab energy drink at the counter at the 4 square (ie, wawa) when i hear a girl behind me singing “baby shark, doo doo, doo doo doo doo”

i’m turn around and she asks, “are you from el rancho? i thought you were and that’s why i’m singing!”

soooooo cute. i love it.