Dec 27, 2011

BYU 6th ward RS Overnight @ Diamond Fork

For years as I served in Scouting, Bishoprics and High Councils I was always troubled by the fact that the girls were always complaining about the fact that the boys always got to do the fun things like going camping every month. I always blamed it on the fact that they did not have youth leaders that were willing to take them and to have to get out of the house and into a dirty cold old tent. There have been a few women though that I cam to admire because they loved to do it and were willing to go on fourth year hikes and take girls camping but they were few and far between. Well in the 6^th ward at BYU I learned another thing that I have come to appreciate. The Elders quorum had a camp and came back talking about how fun it was and there came from it another special experience for Marie and I here at BYU. The second time the Elders started to plan a camp the Relief Society decided that they wanted to do it as well. The Bishop after consulting with the Stake President determined “Why Not?” as long as the Bishopric and High Council could be there as Priesthood support. I asked Marie if she wanted to go and she accepted quite readily.  It was held in October and during what seemed to be a pretty cold time of the year for camping but more importantly it was the night before the deer hunt. As we were setting up camp I walked past a campfire of what was apparently deer hunters. I stopped and talked for awhile and they apologized for the noise they would be making around 4:30 AM as they would be pulling out of camp to go on the hunt. I told them that it would be no problem since that comes with the experience. I also stopped and talked to a troop of scouts that were there for an overnighter and watched as the young men were surprised that girls were actually wanting to do it. Well later that night as I sat with Marie, the Bishop Patten and his 1^st Counselor Kurt Brian I thought about the poor deer hunters in the next camp trying to sleep through a bunch of very giggly and noisy girls around a camp fire. I also thought about the scouts as I heard screams coming from their direction when someone had scared them. Then I watched as three young college men  walked towards the campfire cloaked in blankets and tried to scare the girls as they had the scouts. One young lady asked me very quietly if I thought that bush by the road was moving. I watched it and sure enough it was but ever so carefully. I meandered out and talked with the young man as two others of his buddies came in from another direction. Bishop was still in camp and noticed that one blanket had a cartoon character on it and told the girls anyone wearing a blanket like that couldn’t do any harm. As it was he was quite right and as they were talking to the girls he was blushing since that was all that he had to use. They were all laughing together about it a few minutes later versus the poor scouts who had been screaming about it. We ended up going to bed well after midnight and the girls were laughing most of that time and rather loudly at that. I guess that explained why the deer hunters didn’t mind leaving the diesel truck idling near camp at 4:30 AM for 10 or more minutes next to the tents. Too bad they didn’t hear the girls response later that morning “What truck was running? I didn’t hear any.”

The next morning was also fun after an excellent breakfast cooked by two of the presidency. We had a campfire morning side and I and the Bishopric talked about listening to the spirit and other like subjects. It was very special. Bishop and Brother Brian and I could tell though that there was an approaching storm and decided to have the girls break camp after which we left. They stayed for another hour and then the rain caught them totally unprepared. They had to take down the tents in the rain which they had not completed before we left. Luckily we had all the stuff in the tents loaded but they wanted to let the tents dry a little longer. They didn’t dry but were hung up around Campus Plaza very soaked for a couple of days. These young women had a great time and also some great spiritual as well as temporal training that weekend.