You'll Be In My Heart

During our week at Saranac, (which ended a week ago) I ended up getting overwhelmed emotionally several times. Not that unusual during a week at camp for me, but one particular time; I ended up crying and Matt was there to witness the moment.

He was trying to talk me down and as all of the ladies in the audience know, this never works.

But he was doing his best and in the middle of it, a random high school boy from (perhaps) Buffalo, NY walks up to me, grabs my hand, and looks into my tear filled eyes from behind his sunglasses and starts to sing to me these words,

"Come stop your crying, it will be all right
Just take my hand, hold it tight
I will protect you from all around you
I will be here don't you cry

For one so small,you seem so strong
My arms will hold you keep you safe and warm
This bond between us cant be broken
I will be here don't you cry

And you'll be in my heart
Yes, you'll be in my heart
From this day on
Now and forever more
You'll be in my heart
No matter what they say
You'll be here in my heart
Always"

I say, "thank you so much. That is very sweee..."
When he interrupts with:

"Why cant they understand the way we feel
They just don't trust what they can't explain
I know were different but deep inside us
We're not that different at all

And you'll be in my heart
Yes, you'll be in my heart
From this day on
Now and forever more
You'll be in my heart
No matter what they say
You'll be here in my heart
Always"

"Okay. Thank you so much. I feel much better now. Thank you..."


"Don't listen to them, cause what do they know
We need each other, to have and to hold
They'll see in time, I know

When destiny calls you, you must be strong
I may not be with you, but you gotta hold on
They'll see in time, I know

Well show them together cuz...

You'll be in my heart
I believe, you'll be in my heart
Ill be there from this day on
Now and forever more

You'll be in my heart
No matter what they say
You'll be here in my heart always

Always...
I'll be with you
I'll be there for you always
Always and always
Just look over your shoulder
Just look over your shoulder
Just look over your shoulder
I'll be there always"


"Sometimes that helps. I hope it helped you."
To which Matt piped in (because he was SITTING NEXT TO ME through all of this),
"It sure helped me."


And yes. He really did sing ALL verses, ALL choruses, every part of that song looking soulfully into my eyes, the whole time wearing sunglasses so I couldn't see his.

I was trying very hard to STOP crying, NOT laugh and then try to take in the moment because what in the world was happening here?
It was really funny and a great moment of being met in my weakness, perhaps in the only way that I could have during the week that I was having.

For those of you that want to, here is the song performed by Mr. Phil Collins:

Pictorial Recap of Saranac

I took well over 1000 pictures during the week at Saranac. With editing, I whittled that down to a cool 400 on my computer. I decided that only 370 NEEDED to go onto Facebook. I will try to
keep it to my top 20 or so on here.

Yes, black t-shirts are back in style. So is fluorescent lettering. Large fluorescent lettering.

I designed these shirts myself and felt like a fool wearing it the whole week. But my cabin LOVED them.
So did guys. Also...the girls wanted MEDIUMS instead of SMALLS. Gasp.

Ah young love. Does it get any cuter?

We were pretending to be on the cover of Teen Vogue. Yes, yes we were.
Thank you Hills for giving me ANY references that make sense to 15 year-olds.

Classic High School Musical Shot.
One girl from my cabin was chronically missing from EVERY picture from the week. I just couldn't find her, ever.

Well, you can guess how the ropes course went.

Doesn't it make you want to be back in high school again?
Wait, don't answer that.

So stinkin' cute...you know they get in trouble ALL THE TIME.

I cried when we left Saranac this time.
I don't know if we will go back next summer.
It was like saying goodbye to my high school self and my memories.
It has been like opening an old wound to return there and be healed.
What a gift these last three years have been to me.

About 15 girls from Asheville stood up at Say-So and proclaimed that they had given their lives to Jesus this week.
I cried buckets of tears.
I have prayed for Young Life at Asheville High since I moved to Asheville nine years ago and I was blown away by seeing how mightily God has moved there this year. After all this time. Amazing.

Yep, they are only 15 years old. I don't think they come any more beautiful than this.

Oh great, it does get prettier.
It definitely makes a mom of two kids in her 30's feel awesome about herself to hang around these girls.
Let me just tell you.

We managed to get the sunset parasail on the last night of camp. It was gorgeous! The light was amazing and the girls had a great time; except for the fact that they spent two hours straightening their hair and doing makeup to then go do this. But they forgave me. Maybe.

We brought 75 kids to Saranac-all first timers! It was a great trip and we are so excited to see what happens in the next year and the rest of these kids lives due to what happened this week.

But of course, a great reminder that kids are still hiding so much.
From themselves, from us, their parents and from God. We love them and they still hide. There is nothing that holds us back from God and each other like fear does.
Pray that walls would continue to fall even now that we are home.
We are in it for the long haul and we need endurance!

What I've Learned About My Cabin

These girls that are going to be driving this year...
are 15 and were born in 1993...
were in the second grade when 9/11 happened...
were in kindergarten when Britney Spears came on the music scene...
will be graduating from college seven years from now. In 2016.
When I will be 38.

When my kids will be 11 and 9.
ummm.

Nothing like finding these things out to make you feel a bit old.

Saranac and the living is FINE

We are heading into Night 3 here at Saranac and it has been amazing so far. I can't really catch you up except via pictures, but it we have had a lot of fun.

My cabin is filled with very fun-very silly freshman girls. It has been a challenge-more so than I imagined before getting here. And that has caught me off-guard. I am missing my old cabins and old friendships that were developed here simply because they have the benefit of age on them. New friendships are hard and take time and it is always hard to start over!

But it is really exciting that we have 75 kids here with ZERO second-time campers. That is almost unheard of in YL camping and it is really amazing. These kids are seeing this place for the very first time and experiencing Young Life for the very first time. What a privilege to be along for this ride.


One again, I see ghosts of high school past around every corner. I feel like a nut because I seriously remember nearly every minute of camp from when I was in high school.
I remember sitting on the boat dock, laughing, skiing and having the time of my life. I spent so much time RIGHT HERE when I was here as a high school kid.

It is awesome to be here. I love getting to be with girls as they experience real life.

Final Thought of the Day

I have to go get a shower before my kids get up from their naps, but final thought of the day.

On our way from back from camp, we handed out sheets of paper and pens for kids to write themselves a letter about the week that they just had. We typically mail it to them around Thanksgiving just to remind them what they heard from God and what they discovered about themselves during camp.

It has been great year after year to hear from kids and how that letter helped them on their journey.

This year, we did the same thing and we had the kids self-address the envelopes.

Except that 75% of the trip, 48 kids did not know how to address the envelope. No, I am not kidding. They didn't know which side of the envelope the address went on. They didn't know where the city, state and zip went. They didn't know their own ZIP CODE.

It was honestly the first time in my life that I have thought about homeschooling my kids.
How, is a kid in honors classes going into their senior year of school going to survive without knowing how to address an envelope to another person?

I fear for the future.
Thanks George W. Bush for No Child Left Behind. It's working. No seriously. I love it, its perfect. For me to poop on.

Bus Trips

Since we got back last week from Saranac, I have had some time to reflect on our trip. We had a great time, but one of the funnier things that happened was, we let all of the kids get on and find their seats first. This resulted in all of the leaders sitting in the front of the bus. That is, all but one.

Poor Amy Berry was left to her own devices in the back of the bus, next to the boy who gave the great hair tip. Yes, poor Amy.

She sent Matt a text about 10 hours into the trip that read, "Hey, thanks Leaders in the front of the bus. I just woke up and my bus partner was brushing my hair. This trip is fantastic."

First off, it was funny that she sent us a text rather than coming up front to tell us.
Secondly, she is a few months pregnant and was on the trip with one high school girl and we let her be in charge of the back of the bus.
Third, waking up to anyone touching you on the bus is nasty. Someone brushing your hair? Creepy.

Texting is one of the best new inventions of the millenium. I am pretty sure that I could not be a leader without it. But on a bus trip? It was hilarious to see all of the kids texting each other, SEATS AWAY FROM ONE ANOTHER.

Pinnacle Moment

Today it was our cabins turn to go parasailing. I am especially fond of this cabin ride since my best friend Robin met Jesus while on the parasail at Saranac.

Today was an amazingly beautiful day to take the girls out. It was 75, clear and sunny. We already had fun in the morning and were excited since we were the very last cabin in camp to get to go on the ride.We got out to our spot on the lake and groups of three were whisked away from the boat and we saw them laughing, screaming and just taking in the beauty that surrounds us.
As each group was pulled in, their faces revealed pure exhilaration. They loved it.
Since no other cabins were waiting to go on the ride, our boat drivers let us jump into the water, swim around, pull each other off of the boat, jump from the top of the ladder etc. Our girls were having a blast just being kids. No boys, no distractions, they were just kids again.

Soon, it was time to go and as we headed back towards camp; the boat surged and we were flying along the water. It was so loud that the girls lost all inhibitions and they began to sing. They sang without fear, without holding back, with everything they had. It was amazing to sit back and watch these girls as they experienced freedom. PURE freedom. It was a beautiful moment to watch them let go and be free, even just for a moment. Most of them have just finished their freshman year, with a few sophomores. The difference between a freshman and a sophomore would astound you. Regrets are different. The chip on their shoulder doesn't quite have the same groove yet. And it was great to see all of them return; even for a moment, to being a little girl.

I felt like the luckiest person in the world to watch it, experience it and love them. Also, I am sad for them because as soon as the boat rounded the corner to come back into camp; the singing stopped. Everything became quiet. The world returned and they had to enter back into it. Life is still incredibly safe and great at camp. But not nearly what it was on the boat out in the middle of the lake with just us girls aboard.

Tomorrow we will be leaving camp and many of the girls are anxious about what their lives will look like back home. The only hope that we have to offer them is this:

"If God is for us, who can be against us?"

Romans 8:31

Camp Pictures

I found my camera cord today so here are some of the best from Days 1-3:

Day O' Injuries

Today Matt and I both sustained injuries on the water weenie dock.
You heard me right, the water weenie dock.

At Saranac, they have a floating dock about 100 yards from shore. Attached to the floating dock is a 15 foot long inflated cylinder called the "water weenie." The point is simply to try to run to the end and fall into the water. We were running on it and I lost my balance about mid-point and fell onto the tube with my arm extended into the air and felt a popping sensation. Fantastic.

It didn't seem like a big deal and I moved on to wakeboarding, the giant slide and all the rest of the waterfront including SAILING!

Tonight, my whole side tightened up and I can no longer extend my arm above my shoulder at all.

Matt, meanwhile began to wrestle guys on the same floating dock. He lifted several at one time and reinjured his neck. He hurt his neck earlier this year pretty much doing the same thing and had to spend two months in the chiropractors office. Now he can't swivel his head back and forth.

Besides getting hurt, we are having the times of our lives. Our cabin got the canoe breakfast this morning and got to paddle to a nearby island in a giant indian canoe that holds 20 people at a time. It was beautiful and a great way to start off the day.

Thanks for praying and I will upload pictures soon, I SWEAR!

Off to Saranac We Will Go

We left this morning for Saranac Village with 57 kids and leaders. We made a pit stop in Washington D.C. to go to the Nationals/Orioles game at the new Washington Nationals stadium.

Just to let you know, the stadium is in the Anacostia portion of DC, which is the murder capital of the U.S. We are also staying at a hotel that is just a few blocks away from the stadium and smack in the middle of the "yet to be revitalized" portion of Anacostia. It was special to pull into our nations capitol and introduce our high school friends to what a real ghetto looks like. Seriously.

The only way that Matt could put it diplomatically on the microphone to encourage them to NOT leave the hotel under any circumstances was to say, "I am sure that you have been in safer neighborhoods in your life..."


We went to the game and met up with my little brother Drew and a friend of his, Sammie. We had a great time catching up until the bottom of the 5th inning when the Heavens opened up and we were in the middle of a torrential downpour. I have never seen a rain/lightening storm quite like that before.

So we left and now we are heading to bed cause we have to get on the bus at 5am for a 10-hour drive into camp.

Our children are being graciously housed at my parents for the week. It was an amazing drop-off with the kids. Asher made it seem like the whole trip was his idea.

"I want to go to RiRi and Opa's house. Can I ride in their car? How about Mommy and Daddy go on a real long date and then come pick us up?"

Well, wasn't that convenient?
We just strapped that kid into my parents car and got the heck out of dodge!

I accidently left my camera cord at home, so I am going to struggle with updating pictures while we are here. But if I can snag
one from someone else, you can be sure to see the pics!

Thanks for praying and thinking about us!

On the Road Again

Matt and I left with a busload full of high schoolers at midnight last night and headed north.

We stopped for breakfast outside of Baltimore, MD and then on to Philadelphia by lunchtime. We arrived in downtown Philly to take a quick run up the steps that Rocky made famous in one or all of the Rocky movies.



Then we went to a downtown market to eat lunch. I stood in a line for over an hour to get a Philly Cheesesteak.I mean it was good and all, but seriously, does it really take an hour to make cheesesteaks?





Then we checked into the hotel and ran off to the Philly/Tigers baseball game. Matt and the boys all took off their shirts and painted themselves with ketchup all in hopes of getting on the giant video screen, they never did. But it was hilarious and all of these serious Philly fans were not very excited to have a group of guys standing up and singing for the last four innings. But the Philly's won and so all ended well. We just got in and you know that this trip has made high schoolers tired because, it is 10:40 and all of the girls in my room are getting ready for bed!



We leave at 6:30am tomorrow and drive for seven-to-eight hours tomorrow to get up to Lake Placid to go to YL camp on Saranac Lake!

We are tired, but fired up to get there. To see more pictures so far, check out the flickr link!