camp & talent show nostalgia

well it's thursday.

talent show night.

i'm feeling nostalgic.

i was the 2nd flower from the right.
some of the dearest friends were the other 3 flowers.

i can explain.

our ella & bennett are away this week.

their first week of sleep away summer camp.

and not just any summer camp.

camp putnam.

the very best camp there ever ever was.

the care & share camp.

the camp where i was a proud village 4 counselor along with my best friend 

and amazing friends/sisters for years & years.

the camp where i got to crush, love and eventually marry the handsome counselor from village 1.

the camp where i learned in my tween & teen years the very best parts of 

love, friendship, memories, heartbreak, getting dirty, being silly, 

gimp, frogs, braids, exhaustion, selflessness, 

compassion, diversity, creativity, security, grit and grace.
the camp that is so very much a part of who i am twenty years later...
in my life, in the work that i do, in our faith, in our family,
in our teams, in our backyard, in our hopes, in our dreams.

well tonight we are missing our kids...big time.

and tonight is camp putnam talent show night...my favorite.

and tomorrow they will be handed their first camp putnam red feather...cherished.

and saturday they will come home dirty and tired 

and the quills of their red feather filled with  

camp putnam memories...priceless.

i can't even stand it.

so, i dug into my attic boxes and took a lil' trip down memory lane.

a wee peek from back in the day.

can you hear my heart bursting?