Wednesday, June 25, 2003 :::
i was at camp last week. camp ryla. it was totally awesome! i was so glad to get to go back this year. it was really something i needed.
(before you read this, you have to do something first. take off that facade that we all wear in which we don't give the person next to us a chance to truly touch our soul - strong words, but you're gonna have to do it to understand where i'm coming from).
ryla? what's that you say? it's hard to describe. almost impossible. people try though. but, almost all agree, you have to experience it first to truly understand. sure, it's a leadership camp. been there done that. sure, it's by rotary. so is enterprise. but this, this is different. tell me, you say. shortly put, ryla is unconditional love. strong word, eh? it's the truth. campers get off the bus and are enveloped in a world of unconditional love and support. for some, this is the first time this has ever happend. it's amazing to see how people can change in this type of environment - to become the person they always wanted. ryla is tradition. over the years, things have developed which make camp what is it. without these, things would not go how they go. no ice cream? no universe? not the same ryla. (i kno that was ambiguous. it's tradition. if you care enough, you'll ask). those two ingredients differentiate our ryla from all others. that wasn't a very good explanation, but like i said, it's impossible. one thing to note, many lives are changed for the better in only 6 days.
what about me tho? what's my story? i was a pretty shy kid, but i didn't like that part of me. i wanted to be more outgoing. i tried to be. and to some extent, it was working. summer before junior year i became the webmaster for my interact club. first meeting of the year, the two co-presidents couldn't stop talking about this camp ryla thing. sounded awesome. i wanted to go. i didn't kno anything about it, yet wanted to go. i became active in the club over teh course of the year and ran to be co-president. my friend and i both got it. presidents got to go to ryla. sweet! then someone a year older from keyclub told me that a friend of his went and came back a changed person - totally outgoing. wow. that's what i wanted. so i was reved up to go. didn't kno what to expect, but excited. and so i went. amazing experience. i signed up for the entertainment workshop hoping to hone some extrovert skills. i ended up playing a big part in one of the skits. and the very next morning i remember one of the counselors coming up to me and telling me how good a job i did. i didn't kno this counselor, and here he was giving me props. that made me feel good. i couldn't have imagined it being any better. i was a changed person. i came back more outgoing and willing to try new things. and i slowly became who i wanted to be. i'm still not there. but each year i get closer.
still on my way...
Soup
1:46 AM:::
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