Heaven
this is long because its kinda just for me to reflect
i wrote this entry for my own purposes.
i returned from heaven today
(heaven being camp akita)
akita is a church camp
with a deceiving title.
although the camp does include a lot of
religious growth and relizations..
about 10% of the camp is God-based
the rest is just the kind of days
you wish you could experience
every day of your life
example: food fights, giant games of
"capture the flag", volleyball tournaments,
"power ball", water balloon fights, rocking out
to classics like "brown eyed girl",
soap sud dance parties, and mud wrestling...
...and its every single day.
its sweet!
about 200 people go each session.
our cabins are on teams and we treat them
as if they were sports teams, its awesome.
my team placed 2nd this year.
we were close.
well anyway, i got back from this amazing place
and i am so disappointed
it was my last year there ever as a camper.
since im a senior next year, there is no more camp akita
just staff or l.i.f.e. guarding (this service group thing that
sets everything up and people think its kinda like camp)
on the last night of camp,
we always have a spiritual meeting
on "vesper hill" to reflect on the week,
and the stuff we learned.
my cabin was all seniors and
about 6 of us shared with the camp
our life at akita and how
we will always have it in our hearts and stuff.
The whole week is just a consistent happiness
that i wish everyone had a chance to feel.
anyway,
on vesper hill there are 2 rows of "benches" and a
cross at the bottom of the hill
and at night when they shine the light on the cross
during this ceremony it looks as if the trees create a path
going upward, as if it was going to heaven.
its something almost impossible to explain but
its beautiful..
and julianne and i were just in a gaze during the final moments at this
spiritual place, and eventually everyone went back up to the lodge but some of us who were spending our last night there stayed,
and talked
a small group of us decided we would go down the hill
past the cross
to this small log circle called "whispering pines"
only one of us had a flashlight
as julianne and i were walking down we notice the image of the pathway
"to heaven" was slowly going over us
we were walking beneath it
as if we were walking to hell,
we both noticed it but didnt say anything.
and eventually arrived at whispering pines.
when the girl with the flashlight turned it off
the trees had the most beautiful glares of light
on them and when you squinted your eyes
they looked like floating candles
our cabin mates with us soon started singing beyonce
so immediately julianne and i got up and
started heading back up the hill
we were looking for a more quiet calm moment.
we noticed that the light shining on the cross
was no longer on, and no one was there anymore.
and akita, to me, and to basically anyone who has ever gone there
is most definitely a "safe place" i feel so secure when im there
but when we passed the cross in the dark it was one of the most
insecure, unstable, mentally draining moments of my whole life.
but...
i didnt even say i was scared to julianne
it was unheard of to be scared while at akita..
so we go on the path in between the benches and
soon reach the light of the lodge.
the stars were incredible
i could see every constellation
every planet, every galaxy
so amazing.
but the more i thought about it
the more i realized how real God is
i had just mentally experienced heaven and hell.
and i thought of how beautiful it was in whispering pines
maybe hell is beautiful but those who go there
do not have the ability of recognizing it, they spend their
whole lives painfully wishing for the acceptance of beauty
of love, of God.
It was an experience i dont think i will forget.
i wrote this entry for my own purposes.
i returned from heaven today
(heaven being camp akita)
akita is a church camp
with a deceiving title.
although the camp does include a lot of
religious growth and relizations..
about 10% of the camp is God-based
the rest is just the kind of days
you wish you could experience
every day of your life
example: food fights, giant games of
"capture the flag", volleyball tournaments,
"power ball", water balloon fights, rocking out
to classics like "brown eyed girl",
soap sud dance parties, and mud wrestling...
...and its every single day.
its sweet!
about 200 people go each session.
our cabins are on teams and we treat them
as if they were sports teams, its awesome.
my team placed 2nd this year.
we were close.
well anyway, i got back from this amazing place
and i am so disappointed
it was my last year there ever as a camper.
since im a senior next year, there is no more camp akita
just staff or l.i.f.e. guarding (this service group thing that
sets everything up and people think its kinda like camp)
on the last night of camp,
we always have a spiritual meeting
on "vesper hill" to reflect on the week,
and the stuff we learned.
my cabin was all seniors and
about 6 of us shared with the camp
our life at akita and how
we will always have it in our hearts and stuff.
The whole week is just a consistent happiness
that i wish everyone had a chance to feel.
anyway,
on vesper hill there are 2 rows of "benches" and a
cross at the bottom of the hill
and at night when they shine the light on the cross
during this ceremony it looks as if the trees create a path
going upward, as if it was going to heaven.
its something almost impossible to explain but
its beautiful..
and julianne and i were just in a gaze during the final moments at this
spiritual place, and eventually everyone went back up to the lodge but some of us who were spending our last night there stayed,
and talked
a small group of us decided we would go down the hill
past the cross
to this small log circle called "whispering pines"
only one of us had a flashlight
as julianne and i were walking down we notice the image of the pathway
"to heaven" was slowly going over us
we were walking beneath it
as if we were walking to hell,
we both noticed it but didnt say anything.
and eventually arrived at whispering pines.
when the girl with the flashlight turned it off
the trees had the most beautiful glares of light
on them and when you squinted your eyes
they looked like floating candles
our cabin mates with us soon started singing beyonce
so immediately julianne and i got up and
started heading back up the hill
we were looking for a more quiet calm moment.
we noticed that the light shining on the cross
was no longer on, and no one was there anymore.
and akita, to me, and to basically anyone who has ever gone there
is most definitely a "safe place" i feel so secure when im there
but when we passed the cross in the dark it was one of the most
insecure, unstable, mentally draining moments of my whole life.
but...
i didnt even say i was scared to julianne
it was unheard of to be scared while at akita..
so we go on the path in between the benches and
soon reach the light of the lodge.
the stars were incredible
i could see every constellation
every planet, every galaxy
so amazing.
but the more i thought about it
the more i realized how real God is
i had just mentally experienced heaven and hell.
and i thought of how beautiful it was in whispering pines
maybe hell is beautiful but those who go there
do not have the ability of recognizing it, they spend their
whole lives painfully wishing for the acceptance of beauty
of love, of God.
It was an experience i dont think i will forget.