Camping

Julia and I sat on the couch compiling a list of items we would need for camping. Coffee pot – to boil water with, water – to drink and to wash with, bug spray – to keep those bugs off us, matches – at this point Julia interrupts and questions “Just in case somebody farts?” I guess that was my fault for over exaggerating when someone farts “Ewe, go light a match!” and then I would proceed to chase their rear end with a lit match flaming away.
Our camping trip was intended to be a single night on our own property. I have taken the kids camping a few times before, this time it’s the first in many years that Mom was able to join us. We made it to our land, just ½ mile from our house, about an hour before sunset. We pitched the two tents, Becca and Justin helped start the camp fire. In no time at all we had a raging fire going and the kids were making s’mores. Of course, somehow s’mores were made before brats but I guess that is what we do when we camp.
The evening darkened and the kids picked wildflowers. I remember being told when I was younger never to pick the flowers at Grandpa and Grandma’s house, picking those white flowers were illegal. I thought as I watched my kids pick flowers and wondered if picking those white flowers at my grandparents was really illegal or if that was a plot so their grandkids wouldn’t pick all the beauty from the woods.
I loaded more logs onto the fire as the first few rain drops fell from the sky. The kids settled into their chairs around the camp fire. I was daydreaming and remembering past camping trips. One that came to mind was one with my cousin, David. He and I went winter camping and in the morning we decided to melt some snow for water. We found an ice cream pail, I am not sure why we brought a pail… but we hung this snow filled pail well above the fire but close enough so the heat would melt the snow. A few minutes went by and like most young boys our minds wandered and off we went around the camp gathering firewood and adding it to the fire. Then we went farther away, gathering more wood, then farther gathering even more. We soon met up with my Uncle Jim, who came out to check on our wellbeing after the cold winter night. He asked us “Why is there a melted ice cream bucket hanging above the fire?” Oops. We tried to explain but felt like complete fools. Of course we knew we couldn’t boil water in a plastic bucket. We only wanted to melt it…Oh well, no use trying to explain. We felt silly.
After the rain started pouring this past Friday, we darted into our tents. I gave the kids a crash course on sleeping in tents. “Keep away from the side walls while it’s raining otherwise the rain will soak right thru the tent and into your sleeping bags.” “Get settled into your sleeping bags now, before it gets so dark you won’t be able to see anything.” “Oh, and here. Take these shoes and keep them just inside the tent door because if you don’t they will be soaked from sitting outside all night.” I left their tent and ran into mine as the rain started to pelt my back, just in time to see Kari stripping…the sleeping bags out onto our sleeping pads. You thought I was getting “dirty” didn’t you!?
Kari and I settled in our sleeping bags and then I remembered and yelled back to the kids “Check yourself for ticks!” That was a reminder that was too late, because what prompted me to say that was Becca telling Julia to stay still because she had a tick on her butt. Becca is so attentive that I was not surprised she took immediate attention to wood tick inspections on her siblings. She is such a good big sister.
The rain was relaxing to listen to as it landed on the tent. I heard Becca in the tent next door say “It sounds like an audience clapping.” It did. It sounded like an audience of nature cheering us along to sleep the night away. Kari and I listened to the children giggle and laugh and wrestle around and every so often we would speak up and remind them to settle down.
The rain brought back another memory, camping at Lake 5. I have camped there several times both in the winter and the summer. The particular camping trip to Lake 5 I was remembering was near an opening fishing weekend. It was raining through-out the midday and I am not even sure who I was camping with. But I do remember lying in my tent reading a hunting magazine; the front screen was open so it wasn’t raining hard. I remember the sound of the rain and the smells associated with rainfall. I remember being so completely satisfied with life in all aspects. I will never forget that moment, much like the moment I was currently experiencing.
My consciousness stirred in the middle of the dark rainy night and I soon became aware that I broke my own rule. I was wet and laying up against the sidewall of the tent. I was soaked, but luckily I had my good sleeping bag and even though I was wet, I was warm. I wondered if the kids were ok and if they were wet. I wondered if any of them wet the beds themselves. I wondered if Kari was wet but doubted she was because I think she would have curled up into my bag if she was. Or I hoped she would have in the event that happened. I told my brain to stop thinking and sleep some more. Then I chuckled to myself thinking about the grief the children would have given me had they known I just broke my own rule and slept against the tent wall.
Morning came and it wasn’t what I hoped for. I was hoping to hear the birds of the deep woods singing but instead I heard a tremendous thunderstorm pounding the skies. I heard the kids murmuring. I rolled over and saw Kari was stirring. I told her I was wet. She replied, “I am laying in a puddle of water.” I looked and sure enough, she was. I asked her if she wanted to cook breakfast here or go home and do it.” She quickly retorted “let’s go home.”
I hollered over to the kids. “Kids, get your clothes on. Let’s go home. We made it all night.” Becca replied “We are wet!” I said “So are we! Get your clothes on.” She replied “Our clothes are wet too.” I replied “So are ours, put them on anyways, let’s go home.” Kari and I came rip tearing out of the tent running towards our truck as the kids ran out of their tent. Becca came running all dressed with shoes on, Justin was dressed with no shoes on and Julia came running out in her underwear. We all jumped into the truck. I turned the key and cranked the truck engine (hoping for instant heat but I knew better) and explained we would come back for our gear once the storm blew over. I jokingly said “Let’s head to Walmart.” Julia looked shocked…as she sat in the back seat, her hair twisted and snarled into about a 26” diameter ball and wearing nothing but her wet pink underwear. Something tells me she would have still gone to Walmart.