Training Week 1: Introductions and Training

I began my week by driving around Sante Fe, learning the city as best I could. Though a pretty small place, it packs a lot into a small area. On the northside is the Sante Fe Railyard which is home to the Violet Crowne Cinema, which featured a full bar and restaurant. My last day off before work was spent watching Mad Max, in fully reclining theatre with a steak dinner and a cider.

My view from my cabin

I have worked at camps before where I needed to learn staff names, maybe 30 immediate counselors and 20 service staff. There are over 200 summer staff at this camp ministry. It took a bit.

I met my two guy counselors who would be part of my core group that I would be working with the whole summer.

Even though we were still training, we still ran activities on Tuesday for the Albuquerque School for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing. I got to practice my American Sign Language as well as helping out a group on the fly, when nothing seems to be going correctly. I bumbled around, and I made it work. I had a feeling this would be a reoccurring lesson to learn this summer, and I was up for it.

Thursday we got to get trained on 3D archery, which was a shooting range with large rubber animals to shoot at. One of our gents hit a target perfectly to where it's head blew off ... it was pretty cool.

The face of a cold-blooded rubber animal killer.

One of the nights in particular, the newly acquainted staff met together to sing worship one night. It was a sincere and heartfelt session, much like many of the interactions I've had here with staff. I remember being surprised by the sound of my own singing. I'm not sure if it was all the loud camp-talkin' or the thin air, but not recognizing my own voice seemed appropriate given this transition in life.

Here's to finding our voice, even when it's gruff and worn.
-Patrick