Some People....

I have been traveling. A lot. In fact, i haven't had a full weekend home in a month. I get back in town on Friday and am flying out again Sunday afternoon. This past weekend was no different. Due to my travel plans I had to miss the final session of Conference, bolt to the airport, wait to be picked up by the shuttle bus, circle the parking lot a few times, only to realize my terminal was going to be the last one on the drop-off route. Instead of being at the mercy of this driver, who refused to be a part of the Universe of Harvey, I got off at Terminal D, checked in on American with minutes to spare, then book it to the opposite side of DFW Airport in time to be one of the last to board and literally the last one to stuff my bag into the overhead compartment. Everyone else had to check their stuff. Whew...I made it! Despite all that, I was pretty calm and collected, looking at it like I squeezed every possible second out of my weekend as possible.

We were making our way out to the runway when the pilot came on and said we had to go back to the gate for some missing paperwork. That's when, let's call him Jerry the Jerk, piped up behind me. Something about American Airlines screws him over every time, there's nothing wrong with the plane or the weather, just AA's incompetence, blah blah blah. The guy sitting next me said Jerry had been like this ever since he first arrived at the gate area, making a big scene at the desk. Jerry then proceeded to pound on the flight attendant call button and berated the poor lady with demands for answers along with his professional opinions on the current situation followed with "How are YOU going to compensate ME for YOUR mistake?"

We ended up getting to Laguardia a whole 15 minutes after our planned arrival.

OK...I bring up Jerry to contrast with another person I observed that same trip. Fast forward 24 hrs. I had spent most of the day laboriously training a supplier up on Long Island. Being exhausted I decided to just head to Chili's right next to the hotel...usually not a big fan but they can grill up a decent slice of salmon. Just after I was seated entered a father and daughter who sat in the booth just in front of me.

The dad looked like your average middle-age business type, but I could tell there was something different about the daughter from the start. She was probably in her early 20s, a bigger girl with her short brown hair done up in pigtails. As she walked she was bobbing her head constantly and had her hands up to the side of her face wiggling her fingers. The best way I can describe it was she looked like she was doing sign language gibberish. I pretty much instantly lost interest in the book I was reading on my iphone and focused in on them. I know, kinda creepy eavesdropping but I love people watching and being an expert at reading people (and a borderline know-it-all), I thought I knew exactly how this was going to play out. Dang, was I wrong...

I quickly learned her name was Carmen because her dad was constantly addressing her. "Carmen, calm down" or "Carmen, stop staring" or "Carmen, put down the knife." While he studied the menu, I noticed Carmen didn't even glance at it; she was too busy coloring.

"Dad, I only have green, blue, and orange crayons but I don't have a red one. Are there orange peppers?"
"Yes sweetie," he said, still deciding on what he's going to order.
"Do they taste like peppers or do they taste like oranges?"
"More like peppers"
"I'm going to make my pepper an orange pepper but it's going to taste like an orange"
"So, you're going to have a pepper-shaped orange?"
"No Dad, it's still a pepper"

Amanda the waitress came up and took my order then when over to their booth to take theirs. He ordered something for him and then he looked at Carmen who blurted out, "Chicken fingers!"

He asked, "Is there a way she could get BBQ sauce instead of ranch dressing?"
For the first time, Carmen's head stopped bobbing as she whipped it around and focused on Amanda; anticipating her reply as if the entire fate of the tri-state area depended on her answer. I could see in Carmen's eye that she thought she was on the verge of something magnificent, something almost too good to be true and it all hinged on Amanda.
"Oh, I think I can make that happen," Amanda said with a wink to Carmen.
It was as if someone just told her Your mom is going to pull through surgery just fine. I'm pretty sure BBQ sauce is a standard option, but the look on her face, and the fact she didn't even breathe for about 30 seconds as she processed all that was happening was priceless...

Amanda left, Dad pulled out his blackberry and Carmen went back to coloring her pepper-shaped orange. It wasn't long before she was either done or got bored. The head bobbing slowly started to increase in intensity and then the hands came up again signing gibberish in the air until she was full-blown rocking out. I was thinking she was about to have an episode, but Dad just glanced up his blackberry and looking at her over his glasses smiled and said, "you're really excited for those chicken fingers, huh?"
"YES! Holy cow, YES!"
"Shhhhhhh...calm down, sweetie. They'll be here soon. Carmen, calm down...tell me about what you did with Cody today."

I couldn't figure out if Cody was a dog or a friend. Apparently she slipped into Carmenese 'cause I was completely lost and either Dad was feigning comprehension or he was fluent in Camenese.

It wasn't long before the food came. Again, the look on her face said it all. It had nothing to do with her physical appetite, but more like she had just gotten a puppy for Christmas. For several moments she just sat there, head bobbing, hands doing the gibberish thing in anticipation.

"Carmen, stop starring and start eating. Look, you got BBQ sauce."

She started to eat, picking up the little cup of BBQ sauce, bringing eye-level and then dipped a chicken tender in all the way until it couldn't go any more...seemingly memorized by it.

"Carmen..."
"Sorry Dad," she said as she quickly stuffed it in her mouth.

This routine continued until the last one which she treasured and savored. While nibbling on it, she looked up on the wall and studied a picture. You know how some Chili's have pictures of like Billy Jean and his blue ribbon at the De Soto, Texas Chili Cook-off, or some ranchers doing rancher stuff like it's an authentic Texan establishment? Well the one Carmen had her sites set on was one of a small-town beauty queen from like 1987 riding horseback in a parade. I mean, the bangs on this chick put tsunamis to shame.

"I want to be her friend."
"Hum? Why do you say that?"
"She looks nice"
"What makes her nice?"
"She's smiling and waving at me. Dad, where is she from?"
"I would probably guess Texas."
"Have I ever been to Texas?" she asked, pulling her gaze away from the picture for the first time and looking across the table to him.
"No, honey. No you haven't"
"Are there nice people in Texas?"
"Some of the nicest people are in Texas. And they have good BBQ sauce."
"Texas sounds nice. One day," now staring at the final nub of a chicken tender, "I'm going to go to Texas and talk to nice people and eat some good bar-b-q sauce."

They finished up their meal, paid the bill, and as they got up to leave, Carmen smiled and waved like a beauty queen to everyone on their way out of the restaurant.

Couple things struck me. First of all, how often do we get so inconvenienced and turn into Jerry the Jerk, blowing up at people, making demands, and being an over-all SOB? I look at Carmen's dad and even though I have no idea what his life is like, I'm fairly confident it's a bit more inconvenient than he originally foresaw and yet he never snapped at Carmen, rolled his eyes, or ignored her.

The second thing I noticed was how different I felt in both situations. On the plane, I felt anxious, frustrated, and annoyed. Most of it was directed at Jerry, but soon the circumstances in general started to tick me off. On the other hand, just seeing the interaction between Carmen and her dad for a quick meal at a Chili's on Long Island made me want to almost get up and give her a huge hug for being such a beautiful person. I literally felt myself smiling the entire time at dinner and for most of the rest of the evening, despite how tired and stressed I was. I guess what I am trying to say is we can't help but to be infectious. Our attitudes not only can govern ourselves and those we directly interact with, but also everyone around us. People's spheres of influence vary, some are large enough to light up or drag down an entire room while most others are much more limited, but I think the principle is the same.

I'm not quite sure what I'm trying to say, and for some reason I feel like I'm teaching my gospel doctrine class right now instead of blogging, but what I do know is I left Chili's a different person, a better person, because of the effect a couple people who I prematurely misjudged.

Tuna Melt Without the Drama...Sign Me Up!

It's been nigh unto four months since my last blog update. While it may not seem it, it actually has been on my mind. You know when you're like, "man, I really need to call Marty" but then stuff comes up and you get distracted and before you know it, days turn to weeks which turn to months and things get awkward and you feel like it's been sooooo long since your last talk that you should now have something profound to report but you don't so you go another day without calling and then use reallllllly long sentences to justify it all? Well that's basically what I've been going through in regards to my blog post. So without further adieu, (btw I almost got 'adieu' without using the spell checker), so without further adieu, I announce to the world.....I had a tuna melt tonight for dinner and it was so stankn scrumptious.

In order to spice up this post, I leave with a not so yummy, but ever so funny, video of how a simple tuna melt can go terribly wrong. Here's to blogging!

Eric Forrester....No Rest for the Righteous

I never watch the news anymore. It's not that it's never positive--because they always throw in those 'feel good' stories amidst the war, corruption, and crime reports--but it's more that I simply don't have time. Well last night I was actually watching 24 live instead of waiting for it to be recorded and then going back so I can skip the commercial breaks. After 24 it led straight into the 9:00 news promo in which they said a Fort Worth 17-year old aspiring eagle scout/athlete/honor student was shot when he went home for lunch. Sometimes you can just tell when people are LDS and this was one of those times...I just knew this poor kid was a member.

So I kept watching. The first story was on this shooting and the news anchor said the victim's name was Eric Forrester. 'Wait a minute,' I thought...'is that my Eric from EFY? No...he's best friends with Kenyan so he has to live in Mansfield. It has to be another Eric.' About that time they showed his Facebook profile picture and I could not believe I was looking at someone I care so much about. I was in utter shock. I couldn't breathe, and when I could I broke down.

All the youth that attend EFY are special, of course, but there are a few who make real and lasting impressions on you. There are the natural leaders like Bryce, the awkwardly funny Stephen, the over-hyper/borderline-annoying but ever so lovable duo of Kent and Matt, the quiet and humble Andrew, the jolly Jordan, the 'I always have to wear something orange' Evan, the clueless Austin, the ever so innocent Derek, the peacemaker Ron, the 'I'm so tough and cool but really not' Matt and many others. Kenyan and Eric fell within this group with their quiet reserve but evident resolve to live the Gospel standards.

They were part of the magical Denton 2006 Servants of All company. In the years following, I kept my eye on them, even if they didn't know it. I knew who their counselors were, how they were doing, if they seemed to have a good time, etc. I usually didn't like to interfere, A) because who knew if they were still interested at all in talking to a big nerd like me and B) we had fantastic times together back in the day, but it was a new summer, new session, and they needed to enjoy their time with that company and counselor.

I'm trying to think if I ever heard Eric put more than six sentences together. I'm pretty sure I heard him bear his testimony, and if I did it wasn't anything earth-shattering or spectacular. What impressed me about Eric was he didn't need to say anything for you to know his beliefs and standards; his testimony was given in the way he carried himself. He just exuded goodness. Still waters run deep applies perfectly to Eric Forrester. Every time I saw him it made me smile. Could it has been the permanent goofy look that was always on his face or just the fact he was so good? Definitely both.

The last time I saw Eric is truthfully one of my greatest memories. On July 17, 2009, at my last session ever, the session director Brother Huso unexpectedly turned the microphone over to me for the Friday night closing comments. I rambled on for like 5 minutes about how much I loved the youth...yadda yadda yadda...they are amazing...yadda yadda yadda...it has been my utmost pleasure to have worked with them and their counselors, bore testimony we are involved in a great work, etc etc... I don't remember a whole lot of the specifics of what I actually said but I do remember exactly where Kenyan and Eric were sitting...just off to my left way in the back by the bleachers. After the closing prayer, when everyone was supposed to be leaving for their company devotionals, I was talking to a few youth right next to the stage when I saw Eric out of the corner of my eye. Tears were running down his cheeks and his voice was quivering when he told me that whatever it was I had said really hit him. I was so taken back by it I didn't really know what to say or do. He turned around and left to go back with his company and I broke free of the other kids around me to catch up with him. I gave him a big hug and said 'I am so proud of you. I love you, man. Be good'

With that, Eric went his way and at 10:18 a.m. this morning on April 13, 2010 he was pronounced dead at a Fort Worth hospital. Last week his mom had just posted his senior pictures to Facebook, he apparently attended prom, and was most certainly looking forward to the last few weeks of high school. One news article even mentioned how he was preparing to become a Mormon missionary in addition to the long list of honor roll, swimmer, boy scout, cellist etc.

Truth be told, every Thursday night at EFY I cannot make it through the EFY Medley without bawling. When the boys start to sing We'll Bring the World His Truth I stand there and picture each one in a shirt and tie on bicycles or knocking doors or posing for baptism photos. Eric is never going to wear a badge saying 'Elder Forrester' as he shares his sincere testimony with others. He is never going to get to open that big white envelope from Salt Lake City containing a call signed by a prophet of God. Even with my testimony in the Plan of Happiness, the first thing that went through my head was, 'How could this have happened to someone so good and how can the Lord take away someone with such love, strength, and commitment?'

I understand fully that God has a plan for us all, but I was so impressed as I went onto Kenyan's Facebook page to offer my condolences and I saw that while most teenagers are stereotypically self-absorbed or at least fall victim to the world revolves around me syndrome, he had such a mature perspective on things. In his status he quoted the final verse in Come, Come Ye Saints:

And should we die, before our journey's through

Happy day! All is well!

We then are free, from toil and sorrow, too;

With the just, we shall dwell.

But if our lives are spared again

To see the saints, their rest obtain,

Oh how we'll make this chorus swell-

All is well! All is well!

When someone passes, we say 'Rest in Peace.' It's kinda funny, because it's actually the opposite. While we have been deprived of Eric's talents for a short while, I know he is going to be put to good use on the other side of the veil. There is too much work for someone of Eric's capabilities to do much resting in the spirit world. The fact he was taken so tragically and suddenly doesn't help with the pain, but how blessed we are to know that that pain is relatively short-lived and that He who has suffered all pain is there to comfort us.

I was around Eric Forrester for literally 20 days, but how enriched my life has been because of examples like him.

I had a dream...of Olympic Gold

They say we dream like 3-7 times a night and that during an 8-hr sleep, 2 hours are spent dreaming. So that means I've dreamed a lot of dreams in my time, and for some reason the ones I remember are way crazy. Does everyone have dreams of being chased through a forest by a beaver who is only trying to return a spatula she borrowed or is that just me? Then there's the re-occurring resurrection of a pilot on a hijacked plane and more recently the ant that somehow became a man and he got a crush on one of my friends and I was pretty sure he was an ant but I wasn't sure so I followed him around. But then he tried to kiss my friend and I was like 'you can't kiss her, you're an ant!' And so I pulled him away and then he tackled me screaming 'I'm not a monster! I'm not a monster!' I tried to struggle...but against his freakish ant strength there was no hope. I woke up flailing and was like 'what the heck was that about??' Seriously, they say dreams are supposed to mean something to our subconscious, so what on earth could that possibly mean?

And my most recent dream boggles me completely. I woke up and went over it several times to see if any of it made any more sense while awake. Nope, not so much. The year, 2014. The place, Sochi, Russia and the XXII Winter Olympic games. The first thing I remember was being at the US/Canada hockey game with a childhood friend and she a freakn Miss Know-it-All in my dream and I was really annoyed by it. There was hardly anyone at the game, and I was like 'Where is everyone?' and she responded 'hockey isn't that big in America, and especially not in Canada.' And then the score was tied 2-2 at halftime, and I said 'there are three periods in hockey!' and she said 'not in Olympic hockey' and gave me a look that made me want to punch her face but then all of a sudden they were serving warm gooey oatmeal chocolate chip cookies. Oh my goodness they were sooo good and I had to have another one so I started to run after the server with my friend yelling at me 'you can only have one cookie in Russia!!' What...is there a cookie quota in the Mother Land...what's up with that? For some reason this was one of my more memorable moments of my dream.

I couldn't find her, but suddenly I was atop a mountain all decked out in ski gear. The thought went through my mind, 'what am I doing up here? My entire skiing experience can be summed up in a less than successful weekend in Winter Park, CO my Jr. yr of high school.' Sure enough, someone told me to 'Go!' so naturally I went. And boy did I go! As I was flying the commentators were saying such nice things about Harvey Uminski and his career-best time. It was only after I reached the bottom did I realize I had the top qualifying time in the Women's Downhill event.

That's when things took a turn for the worse. Not only were people laughing at me for being a girl, but apparently I offended the Russians. Something about how I brought disgrace to their games. All of a sudden I was racing down another mountain, this time not for Gold, but for my life. On my tail were several KGB operatives intent on silencing one American troublemaker. Now, I'm not quite sure how putting a bullet in my head like all the other Soviet-era troublemakers would return honor to their 'soiled' games but that's just how they do things in Russia, apparently.

So just then, on the mountainside was an Institute building, exactly like the one Denton. Holy cow, I didn't know the Church was all that big in Russia, let alone that they have Institute buildings randomly across the country. I looked in and they were having FHE. Thanks, but I think I will take my chances with the Commies.

They were closing in...my heart was beating fast...I knew I was just moments away from spending an eternity frozen in the ice of a frozen Siberian wasteland. Poof! Gabriel Allon of the Israeli secret service and my favorite fictional character swoops in and was on the slopes with me and wasted those KGB scum. I stopped to thank him, but more were on the way. He told me to go but as I turned, Harvey, the Olympic favorite to win Gold, slipped and started to roll down the hill. Oh the irony! Allon pursued, and just as I was going over the side of the mountain, he grabbed my arm. Wouldn't you know it, my coat ripped and I fell...then I woke up in a cold sweat.

So. What does any of that mean? Should I pick up skiing in order to get in shape for Sochi by 2014? Am I destined for Olympic Gold or just greatness in general? Why would the Israeli secret service send their top agent to protect me? A more disturbing thought...why would I rather face Soviet assassins instead of sitting through FHE or why would I be competing in a women's event? Well at least it wasn't figure skating. Not sure there are any answers. For now I will just continue to enjoy whatever it is my subconscious has to throw at me.

Harvey's EFY Memoirs...finally

Six summers of my life have past since I stepped off the plane from Las Vegas. For six summers I have never truly celebrated the Fourth of July. For six summers, I called places like Maple, Clark, Prassell, and Thomas home. For six summers my sweet mother has tried, many times in vain, to reunite the entire U-Crew for just one weekend. For six summers my life has revolved around dozens, or hundreds, or thousands of teenagers. And after six summers, I do not have a whole to show for my all my work with EFY...just several pictures, a couple journals, a few fondly regarded quotes. It's called 'Especially for Youth,' yet sometimes I wondered if I was being selfish. I think after it is all said and done, I got a whole heck of a lot more out of the program and my experience than my youth or counselors could have ever possibly received from me.

I still remember walking across campus in the spring of 2004. I was in front of the business building when I got a call on this crazy new contraption known as a cellular phone...it was my sister Margie, and she said they needed more counselors. Knowing how weird EFY kids were, I was really really...really averse to signing on. While I've never had the constitution or patience to deal with cheering and whooping and hollering and babysitting, I found out it actually pays more than my college job. So ever the opportunist, I agreed to apply for the Denton session. I eventually added the other Texas sessions, and since that time much of my life has been wrapped up with this crazy program. So, I thought I would simply spend a few moments, and by few I mean several, going over highlights from each year.

I'm not sure why I felt compelled to write all this out. I already have journals and memories, and I'd be surprised if anyone ever invested enough time to actually read this, but perhaps it's a form of therapy. Who knows? I originally started this as one single post, but it grew to be forever long so I decided to post each year separately. If you do happen to attempt to read these posts and have your own memories to add or correct a story, go ahead and throw down in the comment section.

That said, please, do come with me as I mosey on back down memory lane...

2004...Stand in the Light

Ahh....so it begins. And little did I know it would begin with a company like unto Consider the Lilies; the only Denton company where the boys outnumbered the girls 2-1…and we were the lilies. Fantastic. After being a coordinator, one who has the opportunity to assign the names to companies, I can truly appreciate the beauty and wisdom in that choice. Even after all these years, I can still remember the names of each of my ten boys...you have Jordan and Kevin, Chris and Cameron, Cam and Matt, Morgan and Quinn, and Jed and Ron. See, I still even remember who roomed with whom. I don't know if it was just because it was my first week ever and I was blown away with the awesomeness that was working with the youth, or if it really was one of my greatest groups ever. I'm leaning towards the latter. Even with having to leave the variety show early to go take my Economics of International Trade mid-term, I couldn't have asked for a better week or a better group of boys to kick off my EFY career. They pretty much sold me on EFY for years, and probably the rest of my life.

This is where the EFY ninjas made their début. It was actually a tradition borrowed from Spanky Hansen, my BC. It was Friday night, after lights out and I was telling a couple of my boys to go to bed when Spanky walks out from the stairwell and pokes his head in. Well instead of yelling or correcting them, he instead asked them to grab their participant shirts and then proceeded to instruct them how to turn themselves from 17 yr old boys into ninjas. A few minutes later, after retiring to my room, I hear a commotion from across the hall. Sure enough, there was Jed, Morgan, Quinn, and Ron still in their ninja garb doing whatever teenage boys high on pixie sticks and Oreos dressed up as ninjas do at 12:30 in the morning. Every single group of boys I had after that were apart of this fine tradition.

Denton was also where I realized how much the cheer-off meant to me, and the bitterness that comes with second place. I watched as my kids came up with an incredible cheer, one that involved four groups of boys encircling one girl. Each would, in turn, circle out and the girl in the middle would spring up and sing ‘Lilies’ all sweet and pretty like, harmonizing with the other “flowers.” It then proceeded into a rousing arrangement of Popcorn Popping changing the words to fit Consider the Lilies and EFY and then concluded with the ingenious chant:

(boys) Lilies!
(girls) Are strong and white.
Lilies!
Stand in the Light.
Lilies!
Have lots of fun.
Lilies!
Are number one!
(boys) Consida! (girls) Wha Wha!
(boys) The Lilies! (girls) Wha What!
(boys) Consida! (girls) Wha Wha!

(boys) The Lilies! (girls) Wha What!

As good and blissful as that cheer was, we were robbed by a bunch of ruffians bouncing around all over the place screaming “Focus on the Locus, put your money on the honey!” for three minutes. Starting the next week in San Antonio and continuing on throughout my EFY career, I made it perfectly clear to my boys each week it was my expectation we win the cheer-off. Yeah, that didn't happen that summer. We didn't even come close...quite a let down. My testimony in prayer was shaken….

This was the summer of the greatest counselor dance ever, set to Let's Get Loud by Gloria Estefan. This was also when Julia Rex preformed the memorable There Is a Green Hill Far Away on Thursday evening. I had the grandson of Elder Richard G. Scott in my SA II group. After Clint asked what I thought of Elder Scott, I remember doing a really poor impersonation of that special witness, to which Clint responded that he was his grandfather. Oh…well…that’s a little awkward…

And this was the summer for so many of us first met...Jeff Nicholas, Sandi Wright, Derick Lee Grayson, Donny Taylor, and many many more. It was also Richie's last as a participant. Did I have any idea where this crazy ride was going to take me? Nope, not a clue. One of my greatest memories was finishing up with my first week, on a spiritual high and everything, and I walk back into my house at 1000 W Hickory to find some strange girl in my bed...the nasty remnants from a party my roommates threw the night before. I threw my stuff down, called up the elders and told them we were going to have correlation a little bit earlier than usual cause I was so frustrated that I had to face the world so soon. I washed my sheets in the hottest water I could get and, no lie, got new pillows and scrubbed my mattress with carpet cleaner.

Did I have any idea that first Saturday afternoon training session on the fourth floor of the UNT Union what I was getting into?? My next six summers (and it would appear much of my time in between summers) would revolve around a program that basically pays about $2.50/hr before taxes. What happened in 2004 was EFY showed me that working with the youth of the church, my counselor partner(s), and everyone else involved with the program would give my testimony more room to grow than I could have thought possible. Besides the cheering and dancing and new friends and mocking my boys from the food they ate to the words they said or the clothes they wore...besides all that, just the spiritual benefits alone were enough to make it difficult not to be a part of EFY.

2005...A More Excellent Way

So I came back for another year. This year I made a stop in Indiana along with my normal Texas tour. Having recently graduated, and still being an intern at Lockheed Martin, I should have taken the entire summer to do EFY, one of my greatest regrets, but for once I had a job that paid better than workin' with the youth. If I remember correctly, this was the same year that Richie was hired to be a counselor before he left on his mission in August. I think we were even roommates in SA 2.

Indiana was fun. I met some great new counselors. In fact, my co-counselor Lori Depew, eventually ended up as my coordinating partner for one week in 2008. This was also the summer I picked up the infamous Matt Hyde, fresh off the mish, in Memphis and began that relationship. Big Al Doan also was introduced into my life, and it has been enriched greatly because of it. I remember walkie-talkies were a big thing for co-counselors in Texas, so I decided to take a couple up to Indiana for whoever would be my partner. However, I was in a triple combo with Elizabeth and Lori so I held onto one while the girls roatated. We didn't let Elizabeth have the walkie too much, though, cause every time she got on the radio, the only thing she would say was 'Breaker, Breaker, Breaker, errrrrrrrrrrrrr uhhhhhhhh....' Constantly…I mean constantly. whether you were standing right next to her, on the bus on the way to the banquet, or in the middle of the night. It was hilarious.

I am so glad I went up and did Indiana. For one, my boys were incredible. See and Hear was indeed a special group. The Mendenhalls have remained as one of my all-time favorite session directing couples, and I was truly blessed with wonderful co’s. It was also interesting to see for the first time how things are run outside of Texas. They were…different. Not necessarily better or worse, just different. The Midwest counselor group has a different culture that I really didn’t realize until just recently. After seeing EFY from the macro, program level as opposed the micro-focused on my boys level, it was pretty obvious. Needless to say, it has made me appreciate the traditions and culture we try to foster in Texas. I believe we truly are unique, and how awesome it was to be raised in this…environment…no family.

Again, Denton was an awesome week. We were blessed to have Shanna Davis in our company. She was a beautiful girl who had been in an accident a couple years before out in west Texas and after overcoming soooo much, still had difficulty getting around. It was an incredible thing seeing the entire group feed off of her energy, excitement, and sense of humor. Also, two of my participants from this group, who were not dating at the time, eventually got married..so that's special...Needless to say we were quite united. So much so that we won the ‘Spunity’ award (combination of the Spirit and Unity award…aka the best company), but.....we still came up short at the cheer-off.

We had a good cheer created by Peter Grey, possibly even a winner. I had such high hopes, but those hopes crashed and burned as I watched my company, Condemn Me Not, completely and utterly botch up their final performance. Even though I knew there was no possible way to take the prize, I have to admit I was pretty much on the ground rolling (yea, even rofl) watching our group have no clue what they were doing, running into each other, and pretty much make a complete fool of themselves in front of the entire session. Alas, I was now 0-5 and was, no lie, utterly convinced I needed a black kid to push me over the top. I just knew that was the one element I was lacking...Finished out the summer winless...Guess this means I just have to come back for another summer.

2006...The Greatest Gift

My final year. That's what I said as we started the summer of 2006. After all, three years is enough, right? And it was going to be a summer of great milestones, so it's best to go out with a bang! Harvey's cheer-off drought finally ends, the largest EFY session ever outside of Provo takes place in San Antonio, and Harvey had his first kiss. j/k. Well about the kiss. I would never joke about the cheer-off.

So, Jeff Nicholas, now the coordinator, talked me into being a building counselor, leaving behind my beloved youth to deal instead with the not nearly as cool counselors. So we compromised, I would be a counselor in Denton and a BC in San Antonio. I was rewarded with probably my favorite co-counselor of all time, Amanda Little. What an absolute treat it was to spend my last (cough) counselor week with her. She was so amazing, is now married, and has a little baby. Precious!! You pair her up with someone as amazing as me and youth like Kent, Matt, Kenyan, Eric, Andrew, Jack, Bryce, and many others, you have one STELLAR week!

Anyway, seeing how this was my last (cough) chance to win the cheer-off, I laid the pressure on pretty thick. I had always vowed to never tell my kids what to sing/say/dance/perform; the only advice would give was: yall need to be louder...everyone has to participate...or...kick the excitement level up a notch! Because I truly felt my life would be unfulfilled without a cheer-off championship, I seriously almost went back on that vow. I mean, not only did I know full well what made a successful cheer, I also had had the same company name, Servant of All, back in 2004 so I totally could have rocked it out. I am happy to admit I did not...primarily due to the fact I was on variety show duty and missed much of the cheer prep, but still, I kept my input to a minimum. The first time I really saw it was as they preformed it at games night.

Well, let's be totally honest...I've seen better cheers, but I've also seen worse cheers take the prize, but it's not always about the coreography or the script. There is 'joy in the journey' (little 2003 EFY throwback for you...ha..ha..haaaa..) from that first awkward Monday afternoon meeting where the kids can't even talk to each other to all of a sudden 50 hours later try to think of the hippest/chessiest/rockingest cheer you can think of in conjunction with a name rooted in a scriptural verse. So while I've seen some great cheers that more like productions, the only time I've ever been disapointed in my group was when they didn't A) take it seriously, B) didn't have full participation and c) thought they were 'too cool' for this. I mean, comeon, we're at EFY...the ipidomy of cheesy...get over it. In fact, this past summer when I was coordinator and acted as one of the cheer-off judges (by far and away one of the best perks of the job), I saw the cheer of one group that had Eric and Kenyan in it. It was pretty lame, I mean it was laaaammmmeeee, and it was so funny to have both boys come up to me, almost ashamed, and apologize for pretty much blaspheming the sacredness of the cheer-off. "We're sorry, Harvey" was all they could say. So clearly after 3 years, that lecture I gave them on Monday afternoon at 'Meet Your Counselor' truly sunk in.

I think what set this cheer apart from all the others in years past was one of my beloved boys, Bryce Romney, started off the cheer with the disclaimer: "We would like to dedicate this performance to Harvey since this is his last week as a counselor." This turned out to be the first of many shout-outs and of course came to a complete suprise. Jeff and Julia started laughing and looked at me with the “that’s a cheap trick, son.” But I think the shocked look on my face convinced them I had nothing to do with it. I don’t know who’s idea it was, if the kids thought of it or if Amanda suggested it, but honestly I think if it hadn't been for that plea for mercy and pity, we might not have walked away champions of the EFY...and quite possibly champions of the world.

The thing I LOVED about all this though, was the kids got into the excitement of it all. They saw it was important to me, and so it became important to them. True, I really wanted to win a cheer-off, but by keeping my distance in the planning and execution of the cheer I kept the focus on them. I wanted to make a big deal out of it because I knew it would increase participation and up the hype for the week. If it gave them a goal to work towards, come together as a company, and provided a bit of meaning for the week, I figured it was worthwhile. That and I freakn wanted to win a cheer-off. I still have a video of the Friday night awards banquet. My kids were around me…I was too worried and stressed to even eat my cake (I know, I almost can't believe it myself), and then Sandi Wright announced Servant of All. I jumped up and all the kids were whooping and hollering and cheering, it was awesome. I don't remember who won the 16-18 yr old cheer off, but their counselor came up to me and said "you know Harvey, when we won my kids were like, 'why can't you be as excited as Harvey?' and I was like 'Because I'm not as good as Harvey is.'" That's so not true, but in a way it kinda is.

So I go from that elation to the 'dreaded' BC role. (I'm really going to bash the position of BC beacuse that's how I felt at the time, but please be aware I have had a 'Come to Jesus' moment regarding the beloved BCs.) I remember moving into my room on the bottom floor in Thomas and for the first time seeing all the doors and realized none of these would have my youth. Then came the door tags and 'meet your counselor' notes, followed by the influx of those little HBs, but this time they weren't my little HBs! The worst part of it all was Friday night and seeing all the unified "We'll love each forever!" groups taking pictures. I died a little inside. Basically, what I am trying to say is I pouted all week. Never that summer or the next did I catch the spirit of the effect a BC can have on his or her counselors and how that feeds down to the youth. I'm sure I was taught that lesson somewhere along the way, and I had fantastic examples of what fantastic BCs are, and it wasn't like the BC team was a bunch of stuck up, annoying, lame punks...they were some of my favorite people. And with Jeff and Julia at the helm, Julia being sweet and overall goodness and Jeff in his 'Mr. Smither's Chair' (which no one realized until the following year that it should have been called the 'Mr Burn's Chair' because Mr Smithers was actually his homosexual assistant/admirer), I have no one to blame for my depression besides myself. I did have fun, however. The best Thursday night activity ever happened that week, one where we frosted cookies for another member of the team, it was pretty much magical. I guess I will just have to come back for another year to see if I could get this BC thing right...

I guess I just took BCs for granted when I was a counselor. I remember Jeff checking in on me just about every night after lights out in 2005. I was already in bed and tired and stuff, but he would pop his head in to see how my day went, how he could help, and probably told a lame joke or something. I saw what being a good BC was, but I never made the connection of 'When I'm a BC, this is everything I can do for my counselors and I can love them as much as I love my boys'

It wasn't until I became a coordintor, and I saw my little brother work his magic, that I truly realized how much of an effect an incredible BC can have on his/her group. I'm probably gonna say this again, but my greatest regret out of all my years is being a mediocere building counselor.

2007...Power In Purity

You're probably thinking, "Are these memoirs over yet?' Yeah...try writing, let alone living, it. So remember how I said 2006 was it? Well I came back, voluntarily actually. I put in my application to be a counselor and planned to use my vacation time from my new post-college, full-time job complete with health care and benefits to work the Texas sessions. For once, EFY didn't pay as well as my day job. I know, it's so charitable of me. However, after being cooped up in a cubicle, believe me, EFY sounds soooo appealing. Then again, I could actually use my vacation time for, well, vacation. What?…that’s crazy.

So Jeff Nicholas called me up and asked me why I was listed as a counselor. As I mentioned I truthfully didn't enjoy being a BC the summer before...not at all. I've always viewed the Especially for Youth program to be about, well, the youth. And that's who I wanted to be around. While I liked the counselors, I never found them as cool or fun as the youth. I mean I would live for those 10-14 boys I got each week, and the fact that they, who were so awesome, thought that I, who was and am so dorky, was awesome was pretty awesome. Remember, I did admit to doing EFY for selfish reasons. I make no illusions about that. Anyway, Jeff finally talked me into being a BC, as long as I got at least one counselor week like summer 2006.

For some reason, Jeff and Margie couldn't find someone to fill in for me my last week (something about me not being replaceable, I'm sure), so Jeff proposed I stay on the BC team and have my own boys. I was fine with that…I mean best of both worlds, right? The camaraderie of the BC team as well as having a group of youth, what more could I ask for? I'm going to admit to something I've never told anyone...I pretty much got to hand pick my group. I wanted to be in a triple combo so that I could be sure not to leave my co-counselor high and dry, I wanted 16 yr olds, I wanted the company name Intreat Me Not, I wanted Derek Howard (one of my boys in 2005) in my company, I wanted Allan Anderson as my co-counselor, and Jeff thought it would be totally fun to include his fiancé, Karris to finish out the group. Basically the ingredients for the EFY equivalent of the dream team. So after many adjustments, room changes, and switches, Intreat Me Not became a reality. I didn't even look over Karris' girls to see who was in her group, until I saw Katie-Jean Speight (the who, the year before, went for several days thinking her company name was Thou Art All Over instead of Thou Art Oliver and little sister to Erin Jo, one of my favorite people) run up to me and give me a big hug. This was going to be an out-of-this-world week! Dream Team indeed.

And yes it was. Pulling double BC/counselor duty was tough; really, really tough. Whenever I was with the BC team having fun, I always felt like I should be with my kids and whenever I was with my kids I felt like I should be doing my BC work. I was constantly being pulled and never really feeling totally fulfilled. And then there was the guilt of relying on others to pick up the slack whether that was with my group or the my BC peers. However, a form of fulfillment was coming up on that fateful Wednesday night, July 4th, 2007. We went up to the top level of the parking garage for the cheer-off finals as well as fireworks (which never really happened cause of the weather). It was also decided that we would just have all the pizza delivered there and we would pick it up on the way back to the dorms. Yeah...I do believe Sandi was in charge of pizza night that week and I think she still might have a little nugget of enmity towards Jeff Nicholas for putting us up there. If that’s the case, Sandi, please let go and…uh…let God.

Anyway, forget about the pizza problems, it's time for the Main Event!

Enter Intreat Me Not and Katie-Jean to perform her masterpiece of a cheer in front of the entire session. It had all the elements, HSM references, minor sucking up to the judges, and borderline freak dancing. Let Us had an incredible cheer, and any other session they would've won hands down, but Katie was able to come up with a performance that not only was exhilarating and captivating, but it used the ENTIRE company. I mean, you can tell that she takes ownership and command of the cheer, but everyone was involved in it's spirit and excitement. I was beaming with pride that night.

Following that, it was announced we were to do devotionals there on top of the parking garage (mind you there was a little bit of a roof party going on just a couple hundred feet from us). Allan and I combined our boys and we team taught the devotional. Without any correlation or preparation, we just taught an amazing, spirit-filled devotional. It was like we were missionary companions, having taught with each other for months. We just bounced off each others teaching, picking up where the other left off, and leading it right to where the next one knew where to take it

Ironically, it was about the Spirit. I say ironic, because again, we were all on the roof of a parking garage and as companions we had some party-goers with their music, alcohol, loose/loud tongues, etc etc. So you actually couldn't ask for a better object lesson for a devotional about how we have to tune the world out (like unto the party goers we were watching) and the importance of being internally 'still' in a crazy, mixed up world. Truly, truly magical and without a doubt one of the greatest teaching experiences of my EFY career.

This was also the week Sandi spent hours learning We're All in This Together from HSM and spent even more hours teaching it to the rest of the BC. The result? A nugget of pure joy and happiness to be enjoyed by EFY generations to come.



Four years down, won the cheer off in both the younger and older age group, fulfilled my life's ambition of publicly dancing to HSM, and I was done.

And I was done.

2008...Steady and Sure

I'm not sure why, but I didn't really feel like I was done. And I'm not sure why it looks like I have gas in this picture...But while I felt like I still had some EFY in me, I didn't really know where to go or what to do. Sure, I said in 2007 that was it, but I really wasn’t done…and I knew it. After doing double BC/counselor duty, I realized that I had gotten to a point where it was tough for me to be a counselor; I was tired of being nailed down to a specific schedule, the duties were getting old, and I felt like I was going through the motions. While I was still anxious every Monday morning for that first meeting with my youth, I was getting to the point where a lot of the excitement and magic was gone. I felt the youth deserved someone who was fresh and energized and even a little nervous and awkward. Of course, I usually don’t have a problem with the awkwardness...

I wasn't thrilled to come back as a BC either...I never really grasped at the power for good a BC has and how much he or she can improve, yea even build, the program, the counselors, and the youth. This is something I have seen my little brother, Richie, just really excel at; the ability to build his counselors and thereby building everyone. Not me, I was too busy pouting...lamenting the fact I didn't have any participants of my own to take pictures with on Friday evening. I never realized that a BC’s efforts truly does has a direct correlation on how good a week the counselors have. And as I've mentioned, I always looked to the youth as pillars of strength, conviction, and awesomeness, but I glossed over the counselors. Maybe I just expected or assumed my peers to be set and good to go. But just because I never really struggled with the demands of being a counselor doesn't mean it didn't happen with everyone else. So I decided I wasn't going to apply, but if Clayton and Judith wanted me to come back in whatever capacity they needed me, I would.
October 16, 2007 on my way to do some food shopping at my trusty Kroger store, I get a call from an 801 area code. Even though I knew it was someone from Utah, unless it's in my ID I hardly ever pick up, so I let it go to voice mail. Enter Todd Willey into my life. I called him back and he was curious as to why I wasn't in the system and I said I wasn't planning on working that summer. I knew what was coming next, he was going to say 'well we were wondering if you could come back and be a BC for us again' and so I was prepared as soon as he finished talking to say, 'sure, I think I can squeeze out one more summer.' Instead, he said 'well your name has been bounced around here in the office, and we were wondering if you could come back and be a coordinator' Screech...Ex-squeeze me?

Being a coordinator honestly never entered my mind. I always saw it as yet another step further removed from the youth, and did I really think I could fill the shoes of my sister or Jeff or Julia?? When Clayton talked about applying for the job, I always knew he would've been good, so why would I consider being anything other than part of his team? This call from Todd completely threw me for a loop. I told him I would think about it, but I already knew I was going to say yes.

I mean, was I ready to be responsible for the sucess of EFY for thousands of youth? Well, let me take that back. If EFY is a sucess it's mostly due the participant's participation and the counselor's level of engagement. But if it's a failure....yep...blame it on the coordinators. And what if a huge water main busts outside the dorm, some HB brings fireworks, a kid smokes pot, or, heaven forbid, the counselors realize I'm super lame and don't listen/respect me?

There were such good memories and experiences with our completely green team. By 'green' I am referring to our complete lack of experience, not the fact we were environmentally concious or even the UNT 'Mean Green' spirit which we so embraced. Judith and I were both brand-spanking new at coordinating...never worked a solution's table at check, never really dealt with the EFY Office in Provo, or really been involved too much with major discipline issues that resulted in calling parents and arranging early departure. Our BC team was put together with six BCs who had ZERO weeks of BC experience and Mark Bishop only had one counselor week under his belt.

The craziest thing happened...the entire program didn't fall apart. Even during the chaos that was SA 2 with 1/2 the session from a completely different culture and on scholarship and the sponsor stakes totally switched up housing and stuff without telling us, things kept moving forward. That session seemed to have everything stacked against us and yet we survived thanks in large part to my visiting partner, Hermana Depew.

This was the summer of the Adventures of Melvin, the Monkey to be continued in 2009 by Lil' G.

This was the summer the 'Lactinator' made her riotous entrance into our lives.

This was the summer constant cereal feasting in the site office.

This was the summer of Brother Tanner's unannounced visit.

This was the summer of Kyle Sessoms nearly drowning in the Nile River.

This was the summer of a near-fatal elbow accident in the shower.

This was the summer of a nearly bald man winning 'Crazy Hair Night'

This was the summer of rendezvous with badgers and guarding the participants from demon-possessed cats.

Something else amazing happened that summer. Not only did I realize that I not only liked coordinating, I loved it. I loved working with my partner, Judith, who was so good and being reunited with Lori from year's past. I loved being empowered to make choices I was confident made the session a better session. I loved working so closely with the session directors...especially when you have such amazing ones like the Hadleys and Palmers. I loved training the counselors at the beginning of each week. I loved working with the campus contacts, ensuring they were happy with us. I loved being in front of all the youth at once, feeling their collective spirit and power. And I grew to love the counselors in a way I never knew I could. I remember praying every night, just thanking my Father so much for the incredible staff of counselors, for the examples they were, for the fun they had with the youth, for their level of teaching skills, and how they truly make the each session special for each participant.

As I mentioned before, it wasn't really until I became a coordinator that I truly appreciated the role of building counselor and that I realized how much better I could have done. So I tried to make up for that in my position as coordinator. Even though Judith and I were both learning the ropes as we went along, I tried so hard to get to know the counselors, feel their love and excitement for the youth, and let them know how much I truly respected and loved them for the individuals they were and the lives they lead. If only I could have had this same vision when I had my own group of 3-15 counselors! Oh well, just I hope that in some small way Coordinator Harvey was able to redeem BC Harvey's shortcomings.

My heart was full and, after another tribute to HSM, I was ready to move on...

After the SA 2 Friday night dance, all the BCs were busy taking care of head count, and lights out and such, and I remember just sitting in the Slide Office and had a moment, reflecting over much of the things I wrote about here. All the moments that made me laugh and cry and cringe, which of course caused me to laugh and cry and cringe all over again.

The next morning after the breakfast business meeting, a small and gracious tribute to your's truly, dropping off Lori at the airport and then the master keys at the Holt Conference Center, I drove back to the Site Office to pick up the last couple of boxes to ship back to Utah. Pulling into the Heidi Circle, me thought my mind's eye saw teenagers in white participant shirts as far as I could see playing FHE games, running around laughing and squealing and then the vision changed to beautiful youth sitting quietly, spread out on the lawn in the church clothes studying their scriptures. I just sat in the van and shed many a tear that this was it. Next summer there would new youth and counselors to bask in the excitement, drama, and spirituality that was EFY. After all this way, I was passing on into a new life.

Thus endeth the fifth summer and reign of Harvey Uminski.

2009...Be Thou an Example

October 31, 2008. It was my Friday off, I was just chilling in my house still trying to figure out what I was going to be for Halloween, when I get a call…Todd Willey again. Not sure why, but I let it go to voicemail. I guess I wanted to see what he wanted before I actually committed to talking to him. I mean, he got the tech bag back finally, what else did he want from me?? His voicemail simply said he wanted my advice on people for the next summer, so I was like ‘cool, I can do that.’ And knowing full-well that people had applied to be coordinator (and even if they hadn’t I knew there were several very well qualified folks that could handle it) I felt comfortable talking to him on my opinions of some fantastic candidates.

I gave him a little ring-a-ding-ding and told him we had an outstanding group last year. Then there was a little dead air..to break the silence I asked: “so did you get the tech bag back alright?” “oh yes, thanks for that. I know it was a pain, but thanks for arranging to get it up here” “sure, no problem” (little more dead air) “so...what are you doing next summer?” he asked. I replied, “just planning on working all summer” “oh?! You want to come back and work?” “Uh…no…I mean working. As in my job…my career.” So after trying to convince him I had said my goodbyes, did my time, and was ready to move on, he asked me to think about it. Then, after saying several times over the next couple weeks that I really think other people could easily take over for me, I finally agreed to one more summer. Summer number six…wow. Wasn't I supposed to stop after three??

Jeff...Margie...Sandi...Judith??? Where is everyone and why am I still here wearing this salmon-colored polo?????

Before I express my feelings on this past summer, let me share a few nuggets of joy. Whenever I feel sadden or depressed, all I need to do is pull out my Denton 2009 quote sheet and I am quickly restored to a state of pure bliss and happiness:

--‘No! I said Watch Yo’selves!” – Harvey

--‘Richie, go to time out’ – Sallie

‘Go to hell’ – Richie

--‘My thigh weighs more than Sallie’ – Lauren

--‘O...M...G, where is Lil G!?!’ – Harvey (he was in my possession for literally like 17 seconds)

--‘Nina, I whole heatedly…’ – Harvey

‘….hate you’ – Devin

--‘That’s a special kind of ghetto’ – Elsie, the dorm director

--‘Shush!’ – Richie to Devin, Nina to Devin, Sallie to Devin, Mark to Devin, Garrett to Devin

We never really kept up with the quote board in San Antonio, I think we just got busy/tired/physically, emotionally, and spiritually drained. Well, let me take that back. When Sallie was scribe we had a particularly interesting BC meeting notes. Something about we need to make sure participants don't alter/mess/roll up/eat their shirts for Wednesday night games. Amazing how the meaning can change when you leave out just one letter in one word...like the 'r' in 'shirts.'

Ahhh...Denton. I'm convinced there is a magical quality about Denton that isn't replicated anywhere else and one we don't fully appreciate until the madness and organized chaos of San Antonio hits. It probably has to do with the fact the BCs only have 3-5 counselors and we're all in one dorm. None of this, 'Lauren, you only have 9 of your 15 headcounts in, what's the deal?' Or when you're sitting in the site office and are like, 'ugh, I wanna go back to my room, but it's all the way up on the third floor' but in SA you don't think twice when you have to walk 1/2 way across campus to get back to your room if it meant a quiet nap.

I remember being on the EFY laptop in San Antonio and saw the Denton folder on the desk top, so I thought I take a gander at it. It almost felt like another lifetime, a time when things were simpler, when the only time Sallie got stressed was when she had to use the bathroom in the site office. I remember staying up well into the night on Thursday listening to and approving music for the Friday dance with a few of the BCs and Nina, just having fun and laughing and trying to forget the nightmare that is an I-9 form. A special memory from that night…I remember having a conversation with Richie and mid-sentence just letting out a huge fart while continuing with my thought. Keep in mind, i was sitting forward in a wooden chair, which only amplified the sound. For some reason, I completely forgot that it wasn't just the two Uminskis in there, but a room full of people. I don't think it really even phased Richie until he looked over my shoulder at Devin, whose face of utter shock and disgust was simply priceless. Much laughter ensued. Either because of the audacity of my actions or because it was like 2 am. That was the session where the worst thing to happen was the fire alarm went off during free time on Friday while people were getting ready for the evening and the 16 yr old boy who thought it would be hilarious to leave the dorm in nothn but a towel. Yep, I was right...8 months later it is still pretty lame.

So we move from that to San Antonio where we're understaffed by a dozen counselors, the solutions table line at Monday check-in goes the entire length of the gym, and one of our youth breaks his collar bone by illegally skateboarding literally before the week even starts. Welcome to San Antonio EFY...heaven help us. We had a few bumps in the road, and the first week in San Antonio was definitely the most difficult, relatively speaking. But despite all the external factors (the collar bone, more I-9 forms, being understaffed, etc etc) as a whole the session ran well considering we had dozens of brand spanking new counselors. There was an incident on Friday with a boy, but we weren’t quite sure who the perp was so Nina went to do some detective work after lights out while I closed up shop and took Al Doan (a blast from the past and a welcome relief to our understaffed situation…love and miss him) to the airport in Austin. Well we never could find who our culprit was, but it was actually a funny story. So we knew which floor it was, so Nina started pulling out these 14 yr old boys along with their counselors from like midnight till 3 in the morning. I honestly don’t think they had any idea of the serious accusation…every single one thought they were in trouble for flinging Oreo cookies during free time from their balconies trying to get them to hit the girl’s rooms in the other tower across the courtyard. Boy after boy said ‘well we were throwing Oreo’s…but they didn’t make it’ Then after a couple hours, one boy, who was half asleep, said ‘well, we were throwing cookies’ Nina, with a completely straight face, and almost inquisitorial, asked ‘Did they make it?’ and this sweet boy simply hung his head and confessed ‘No…’

Sure enough, as we’re moving stuff out to the cruiser the next morning there are Oreo’s ALL OVER the courtyard.

The thing I remember most about the session actually happened after all the participants went home and we had our Saturday morning wrap up meeting with the counselors. While it was a good week, all things considered, there were some areas of improvement, the biggest being counselor clumping…aka when the counselors hang out with other counselors at meals and dances and such instead of with the youth. Please be aware that it wasn’t anything major, and I have worked other sessions where it was a huge problem, but the point of those breakfast meetings was to find ways to improve so that was going to be my major point. BUT I didn’t want to just beat it over the heads of the staff, so I put out the question, ‘What can the BCs and Nina and I do to make next week better?’ and I was shocked by the amazing input. Things like, ‘hey can we have a second water station on games night?’ and ‘teaching FTSOY is really hard in the gym, can’t we do it anywhere else?’ and one person said how the kids wished they had more time in the morningsides to listen to Brother Merill, and another counselor was like ‘you know if we were on time to the morningside then Brother Merrill would have more time.’ And low and behold counselor clumping came up all by itself. It was so powerful as I heard counselors express the need to constantly think of ways to truly make the week especially for the youth. Is every EFY staff as incredibly awesome as this or is Texas special???
With renewed vigor to focus solely on the youth and enough counselors to have groups of 8-10 and a session director like the Husso’s…San Antonio 2 was destined to be magical. And magical it was. Words cannot express the love I have for the counselors of that session. In fact, I’m writing this at work and I just got a little emotional as I typed that sentence (it’s supposed to be my Friday off, but here I am so I don’t feel terrible blogging). The feelings of that week must be a small little portion of what Zion must feel like. I'm 95% positive in Zion we'll have counselor sandwiches, and if we do then they'll look like the counselor sandwiches of SA 2. Never before have I seen the schedule rock so perfectly. All 700 participants were seated and quiet in the Laurie Auditorium at least 5 minutes before we were supposed to start. Let me say that again…700 TEENAGERS were sitting QUIETLY before EVERY morning and fireside. IN-FREAKN-SANE! The counselors were with their youth ALL WEEK! Brother Huso was at a company morning scripture study every day. In fact, since we can’t fit the entire session in the cafeteria at the same time, we split breakfast up by age group. So he would go to scripture study, go get a quick bite to eat and sit down with a company in the cafeteria and then follow them to their scripture study. IN-FREAKN-SANE! Some session directors I would worry if they would even be on campus in time for their morningside.

I made the goal that I would go to four classes that week. Well I completely missed Tuesday, but I decided I was gonna stick to that goal which meant Wednesday I attended all four teacher's classes. The last time I had done that was probably....2005? Back when I was a gun-ho counselor. Being with the youth in that setting, watching the counselors do their duties, and all that learning and stuff was such a fantastic way to spend my last week ever.

Walking back to the site office after an incredible testimony meeting Thursday night, I saw the tree swing thing there by Isabell/Myrtle Hall and realized that it had been a landmark for company spots as long as I've been with EFY and yet I had never actually sat in it. So I decided it was as good of time as any. I watched company after company make their way back to the dorms, still quiet and pondering of the messages and testimonies of the evening. It was such a beautiful and peaceful night, cool and dry by San Antonio standards, and it gave me a good chunk of time to just sit and reflect. From that spot I could identify 5 of my old company spots from years past. I was shocked to realize the feelings that came over me were not of longing for the good ole days or really of fond memories of cheer preps/scripture studies/etc, but that of closure. I was done. And it felt good.

Over the previous six summers I have seen and met hundreds of counselors, thousands of youth, and have made life-long friends out of many of them. My testimony of the Restored Gospel of Jesus Christ has grown in ways that I didn't think possible post-mission. While there were times I was ready to strangle the next kid who started the 'EFY Cheer,' some of the sweetest (as in 'aww that's so sweet' and 'dude, that was sweeeet!' both) moments of my life came because I was associated with this program and the youth of the Church.