"Wicked"

Tonight my family and I went to see the Broadway musical "Wicked". I have tried to read the book a number of times and have never been able to get through it, so I had no idea what it was about or related to. (As a child the flying monkeys in the wizard of oz scared me, therefore I have never seen the movie.) I have to say that after all the hype that it has gotten, I was a little disappointed. I have been to a number of other musicals and plays and this one just wasn't in the same playing field. For me it seemed to drag on and on, as if it was never going to end, and there seemed to be a lack of energy in the cast. I don't know if they were just having an off night, but from the very beginning, you could see it in the dancers. They looked as if they were not doing everything full out. One thing I was impressed with was the costuming and set design and the vocals over all. I have to admit that I am going to go back and try to read the book one more time to see if I can do it after seeing the show tonight.

Forever and ever

Forever and ever, our hearts will be true
Forever Kickapoo I’ll dream of you
The friends we have made here we’ll
never forget
Let’s seal it with a vow that we will nair
regret
Let memories be memories forever
We’ll live them all once again
So let’s tell the world all the joys we
have had
This summer with you at Kickapoo.

Summer Kamp

As summer begins and everyone sets off on their travels I am saddened that I will not be making my way to the beautiful hill country of Texas to Kickapoo Kamp. For 11 summers I made my way down there as a camper, then a pawnee and finally as a counselor. As the years have passed and I have been away from kamp it gets harder every summer.
For me kamp was home. It is a place that no matter what is going on in your life you can come in and everything falls into place. It's a place to rejuvenate after a long year. To see the friends that will always be there once again.
As a first time camper in 1996, I had no idea what to expect. I was so excited and went down with a friend who's mom had gone to Kickapoo when she was a girl. After two weeks there I was hooked. I begged my parents to let me stay for another three weeks and of course they said no. As the years passed I made friends, many of who I can go for years without talking to and then call them up one day, and it is as if we were never apart.
This is the place where I became who I am. Some of my fondest memories are from those very first years. At night when the lights out bell rang, we would turn on Deana Carter's "Did I Shave My Legs for this" and fall asleep. To this day when I hear one of those songs I close my eyes and am transported to a cabin with a warm breeze blowing and can hear the cicadas chirping. I also remember laying out at Joe's Place on the deck telling stories and falling asleep to the voices of my cabin mates. It was the one time that we devoted to catching up. Kamp was the place where you could be completely out of touch with the world and it was ok, it was the one place where you didn't have to shave your legs for weeks at a time and no one thought twice about it. I love the fact that the girls who were in my cabin the first year were in my cabin the last year and we all became counselors together. There are so many more memories that flood my mind when I think about kamp. Many of which include Gordon and Bimmie. All the trail rides, moonlight swims, deer chasing and fourth of July fireworks shows have shaped my childhood and are by far the fondest memories that I have.
As I sit here tonight I think about all the girls who are headed down for orientation tonight and how I wish I was among them. Eventually one day I will make my way back down there and I know I will send my daughters there too. To make friends for a lifetime and to learn the cherish the simple things in life.