wow

(this post was written on thursday, but needed to be finished...and finally, it has been!).

It's hard to believe it, but when I woke up this morning, I was still at camp. I already feel too far and distant from my amazing week at The Hole in the Wall Gang Camp. I have more or less wanted to volunteer there since my freshman year of college - that's FIVE years. It's really hard to put the entire week into words, especially since so much of my experience hit me on such a personal and emotional level. It was just amazing!

I spent the week with nine 7/8 year old girls. Their conditions included cancer, sickle cell, and HIV. The way these girls laughed and goofed off and just carried on was so....normal. Especially at camp, I would imagine, they were able to do just that. The medical support at the camp is INCREDIBLE. Rather than having their conditions hold them back and prevent them from doing things, it's just a small part of their day at camp.

My thoughts right now are all over the place, so I know this post is doing little justice, but I wanted to share a quick story...

O, we'll call her, was recently diagnosed with diabetes and has been slowly learning to manage her condition. Before each meal, O would go to the infirmary to check her sugars, and in the morning, she would receive insulin shots. In the middle of the session, I was with O on her morning visit when Beth, the nurse working with O, asked her if she had ever thought about learning to prick her finger herself. O, who is 8, said she thought maybe when she was 10 she could learn it. I found out the next morning for another counselor who saw it (because she's that modest!) that she pricked herself....THAT NIGHT! Something she thought she couldn't do at all was possible. It might not seem that big, but for some reason, it really hit me as a "this is IT" moment. Things just seem possible at camp (you know..like cutting down a Christmas tree, obviously a first for me in general!, in July?), because somehow, they are.

On a quick note, running is going pretty well! I went out for my long run this morning, but cut it short because of the rain. I really tried....but it was ridiculous. I drove to the start of Forbidden Drive, and my plan was to run home and get my car later, but I was soaking wet and my freaking headphone (just one) wouldn't stay in my ear. It was uncomfortable and actually more frustrating than it should have been. I decided after 3 miles to turn around, not baring the thought of struggling in an unnecessary way for 6 more miles....it stopped raining, but I knew the last 1.5 miles would be completely uncovered and would therefore be even worse (although I'm not sure what worse would have even felt/looked like). I probably should've thrown an extra 1.5 out/back in once the rain slowed down on my way back, but mental is mental. Adding additional miles didn't seem plausible at the time. Pro? I still ran 6 miles!