Beyond: In the Eyes of our food packers...

Life at base camp this summer has gone beyond what we had hoped for.  I’m not sure either of us fully knew what was coming, but whatever our expectations, they have certainly been exceeded.  Behind-the-scenes work proves to be difficult, although most people may not be aware of the challenges.  As food packers, the two of us (Ellie and Mercedes) live in the pack shack, which is probably the size of your closet.  This is where the magic happens.  Pack sheets, scales and dehydrated foods of every type are the recipe for our work, and dance parties keep our spirits high.  We pack and re-pack every trip with considerations for everything from the number of guys and girls on the trip, to allergies, food preferences, and more.  Nineteen black plastic bags for each trip, full of the food that fuels the experience.  After each ingredient is weighed and the meals catered for each specific hiking or sea kayaking trip, the work is done... or is it?

Dull moments between packing meals don’t exist.  If we have nothing to do, we may dig a biff (bathroom in forest floor- basically an outhouse) while narrating Prince Caspian aloud to each other.  We also find ourselves doing our fair share of dishes and filling other miscellaneous base camp needs.  But no matter what the task- laundry at Malibu, baking Beyond Bars or cleaning to Oldies music- we really do delight in our work.

Every week, we welcome shell-shocked campers onto our dock, and send the same campers out on their trips with pizzazz, jumping fully clothed into the inlet or hiding in the trees along the trail.  But the fun doesn’t end with the campers’ departure.  Let us emphasize: base camp is never boring.  Each week, base camp celebrates in a new way.  For one Bible study we threw “burden rocks” into the inlet to reclaim freedom in Christ.  A week ago we transformed into characters for a mystery dinner.  Last night we adorned ourselves in trash-bag cocktail dresses, and every night this week we are celebrating a different holiday.  Meals are always a time of community and fun and we spend “off” nights with other staff reading aloud to each other or just laughing and sharing in our bunks.

Overall, even if all of base camp staff is fighting for the Chronicles of Narnia books, this place is an amazing place to live.  We can see the Lord’s presence here through the majesty and flawlessness of God’s creation.  The work is hard but it is good.  We wake up each day rejoicing that we are still here and dreading the day we have to leave.

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Ellie and Mercedes are our outstanding Food Packers on this summer's Base Camp Staff.