Contentedly exhausted, covered in dust and sweat, trying to down a waterfall, hearing the silence of the night, I realize I’m in a different kind of heaven. One filled with woodpeckers, ants the size of beetles and changing autumn leaves. Crisp, dry air, squirrels, rabbits and wild turkeys.
A quiet evening after a day filled with the voices of excited children discovering and trying new parts of a world they never knew existed. Sliding down 15 foot dirt hills and laughing about the amount of it to travel home with us and holding a mountain lion pelt realizing your face and their paw are the same size.
A different kind of heaven where I see kids fighting back nerves and trying that new food, taking five more steps and leaping into the icy creek. And tonight, hiking by flashlight away from “civilization” to find a secret trail and recline on “Whale Rock” to see Venus, shooting stars and constellations.
A heaven I take for granted until my yearly pilgrimage to camp and my return to youth. Feeling the breath of the Kumeyaay, the welcoming of the blue jays and the chorus of crickets reminds me heaven is all around us. Taking chances, stepping away from comfort and getting dirty are what keep us young and let us truly see what life is about.
So get away, breathe deeply, be a kid, love the earth, and live. Thank you, Camp Cuyamaca, from my heart.
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