Mission for the future... Part III

And once again, apologies for the delay, but you know the deal, I'm sure - Christmas, New Year, and then beach mission! And then post-beach mission recovery, of course. So, beach mission...

Where was I? Oh, that's right... day 4? The first full day of program.

It's funny how the team rally on the morning of the first full day of program. They're quite perky, clothes are clean, everyone's smiling, ready to tackle the big day head-on. Any ignorant on-looker would be none the wiser that most (if not all!) had had less than 7 hours sleep the night before. People bearing trays of cooked, buttered toast are shouted down as they attempt to evenly dole out food to the apparent malnourished. There is no hope for anyone attempting to address the horde in order to say anything meaningful, not a word would be heard.

But then a shrill whistle is issued by one of the boys and everyone cranes to see who is seeking the attention - comments are made about "peanut butter knives", "strict 11pm curfew" and "locking away food from foraging wombats" before the holler for "water" is made and the clash and clatter continues. Large tubs probably more commonly associated with a well-endowed washer-woman are toted in so that dishes can be done as quickly as possible. Some discretely slink off to brush their teeth and wash their faces before turning up for the next team bonding session - team prayer and team study. Today's delegated duty group disappears into the cooks' tent to help with the peeling & cutting of the fruit and vegetables for the day's meals. They are obviously oblivious to the happenings outside of their potato bucket or chopping board - their distracting yet amusing and pleasant chatter and laughter can be heard in the main marquee.

Team prayer allows team members to share and learn more about people in their team that they may not ordinarily have any involvement with in any other sub-group within the team. There is something significant about a person sharing an intimate and personal detail of their life with a small group of people that they hardly know, if at all. For most it can be quite a challenge to make that step of trust and, well, lay their heart out on the table. Some of the most interesting insights into the lives of fellow team members can be found during team prayer. Some people also consider it a fabulous time to catch up on some much-needed sleep... Therefore, team prayer and team study can blur into one... The general "topic" for the day is covered in a mostly challenging way, provoking thoughts from an angle that may not have been considered before by an individual. As the team consists of people from many different churches, all with different backgrounds, upbringing and christian influences, the depth of discussion can vary greatly. When small groups are asked to discuss certain points of the topic, it can be quite intriguing to hear on which particular aspects each group got hung up on, or even if they made up their own tangent...

Once team study has been completed and prayers for the day have been said, everyone scurries off to their respective tents for preparation for the morning program. The younger age groups have less time to prepare, as their program starts at 10am, whereas the older age groups have until 10.30am to prepare. Leaders are frantically making sure that the ropes on the tents are secure, everything is in place, and that all the decorations for the tent theme are looking fabulous. Let the games begin!!!

There is nothing that compares to the moment when the first lot of kids start turning up. Familiar faces poke into the tent, exuberant greetings are exchanged. For some it has been a year since meeting, for others it has been shorter, for others, longer. All are welcome.

One particular age group, the Eldads (for kids who have just completed years 10, 11 and 12 at school), are an intriguing bunch of young people. They've mostly managed to get over the stage of attempting to impress anything that moves, and are generally fairly relaxed with who they are, and with meeting new people. Especially when those people are older than them and are keen to talk to them - like the leaders!! A small bunch of kids turn up, a few games are played to "break the ice", and conversations are encouraged. For the first day at least, the atmosphere is pretty relaxed, the leaders just want the kids to feel comfortable around them and feel as though they're gonna have a great time if they stick around. The kids all disappear at about 11.45am, off to their campsites, or to the beach to check out the waves and wonder if it's worth driving 'round to Squeaky to check it out.

The leaders, meanwhile, scurry to finish up conversations without making the kids feel as though they're being booted out, and then head off to team worship - a great time of relaxation, contemplation and thankfulness. The time is spent quite differently day to day, as different groups of people lead. Some days are more challenging than others, but then that can depend on the individual, as each day you are encouraged to "worship" in a way that you feel comfortable with.

Lunch is much the same as breakfast, although everyone doesn't look quite so perky, isn't quite as noisy, and their clothes are a little dirtier. As a side note, breakfast was 5 hours ago...