I'm sure many of you have heard me rambling on about Christian Youth In Action (CYIA). I just thought I'd let you know a little bit about my past experiences at CYIA and then, as this summer unfolds (if it decides to stop raining) I'll let you know more!
Last year in May I attended pre-training, a 2 day training school before the week-long training in June. I went with an open mind about CYIA, but a little bit unsure of what I was going into. On the very first day I walked into the main meeting room and was amazed by the kindness of everyone around me. Particularly a girl named Rachel. I walked in someone who didn't know anyone and Rachel reached out to me with a simple and kind "Hello, I'm Rachel, what's your name?" those 6 words made me feel welcome. That evening we had worship time and it was amazing. I stood in the meeting room and looked around me, amazed to see teenagers who had no fear of stretching their arms out towards God. I had never felt so at home before! I went to 5 different classes in those 2 days, one class for each page of the wordless book. Gold, Dark, Red, Clean, and Green. By the end of day 1 we (all the 1st year students) were told we had to teach the wordless book to a teacher. I was paired up with another 1st year, Ashley, and one staff, Jessi. I stumbled through the story but made it out alive. That day when I said goodbye to new, and old friends I felt like I had something I had never had before, I had more of a purpose. I sat in the car with my cousin, Nate and brother, Caleb. I turned to them and said "Is training as amazing as that was?" they didn't hesitate a second before saying. "No. It's much, much better".
One month later, I again found myself at Aldersgate conference center, but this time we were using the large auditorium for a meeting room. I went to the first check in room and got my nametag, then I went to the second to get my room number and bag. I looked at my room number "H4". Hilltop, 4. After a 5 minute hike up the massive hill to hilltop I threw my bags down on a bed and sat there. After about 10 minutes I had met my counselors, Jessi and Kirsten, along with a couple of the other girls rooming in that room, Dominique, Nicole, Joy, and Kelsi. I searched all the other rooms for my friends, Malea and Krista, the girls I had been writing letters to for the past 4 months but I couldn't find them, so I walked down to the auditorium. Then I found them, after laughing and hugs the 3 of us wandered around the camp for a little and got back to the auditorium just in time for announcements. Meals were to be held in the dining hall, no surprise there, classes for 1st years in the east room, 2nd&3rd years in the west room, 4th&5th years in the fireside room or the chapel. Then it was onto dinner! Lasagna, a traditional meal for the first day of camp, don't ask me why but at every camp they serve lasagna!
We had classes that first night, and worship, where once again teens were not afraid to lift their arms up, it was beautiful!
Sunday Morning: wake up, 6 am... not exactly what I'm used to, but breakfast is at 7 so we've got 1 hour to get 12 girls through one shower, do personal devotions, devotions as a group, (this part normally happened while people were brushing hair, getting dressed and brushing teeth around the 2 tiny sinks we had to share). It was always crazy in the morning, and our room was normally the last group down to the dining hall, I have no clue how the other rooms got ready so fast!
Sunday morning from 11:10-12:10 was the longest hour of everyone's life, team assignments, these are the people you will spend the entire week with....
"Team number 18's team trainer will be.... Nathan!!!" (Nathan ran to the back of the room pounding his chest and I turned to Malea and said, "I pity whoever is on his team")
"And your team members are, Steven, Emma, Marissa, and Jolene." (the last two names, Marissa and Jolene were lost under my trauma of being on this team so I didn't even know them until I got to our study location.)
I knew this was going to be a week to remember...
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