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.