OUaT Journal: My story - Part IV

This is the fourth portion of Cold-Blooded Companion. This was a collective effort between myself and some other Swap-Bot members. I began the story, another person added to it - each only being 5 pages long - and this is the fourth person's addition. I think she did a great job considering what she expanded on (for the first three parts of the story, look at previous posts - future parts will come as well).

    [Two years later we had another big surprise which was...] a freak snowstorm in July! Mack and Maria were so upset wen they woke up to snow on the Fourth of July.
    Our family tradition was always to go and watch the fireworks over the lake with our friends and their kids.
    But with the sudden snow, we were stranded in the middle of the woods!
    Thank goodness we were still able to use our TV - any one with small children know how important it is to be able to entertain them. So, while Mack and Maria watched TV in the back room. Luna and I stayed glued to the TV and our cell phones, trying to get over how the whole country had been covered in snow we watched report after report on people trying to make heads or tail out of it.
    After about two hours of watching the news, I turned the TV off and told Luna we needed to make plans - but this was a perfect time to spend some much needed time together as a family.
    Our world had been crazy with two kids, two jobs - it seemed like we were ships in the night.
    So we gathered the kids up and told them we were going to be doing family things and no TV. Each of us wrote down an activity we wanted to do.
    Luna being a man, wrote down what he wanted - an afternoon of "twister" with me in the bedroom. I laughed and said maybe but I think we'd be much too busy and tired to even think about that one.
    After we all wrote down our choices, we put them in a bowl and it was expressed and approved that we would do all four before anything else.
    The first paper we picked was from Maria. She drew a picture of playing hairdresser. She was thrilled when hers was the first chosen, and even more excited when Daddy was her first client.
    We sat Daddy on a chair and emptied out my make-up bag. Luna was a good sport about it all. The kids gave him bright blue eye shadow (I didn't even know that was in there) and the rosiest cheeks and hot red lipstick. Mack painted his dad's nails many colors. We laughed and I took lots of pictures.
    When we were done, we chose another paper, this time it was mine. I wanted to go out and build snowmen. Although we didn't have gloves or scarves, we used socks to keep our hands warm and off we went. Mack and I worked on a snowman together, and Maria and Luna did. Luna still looked like a downtown whore, but we were all having so much fun.
    Maria had wanted to make hers a "princess" so Luna found some twigs and made her a crown. Mack and I made a superhero.
    We each posed with the kids and took pictures. Mack said he wanted to write a story about the Ice Princess and the Frozen Superhero. I told him that was a great idea and would love to help him with it.
    We went inside to warm up and Luna made us hot chocolate and we sat around the table eating cookies.
    When we were done, we picked the next sheet of paper. The kids were giddy with excitement if it would be Luna's or Mack's.
    It was Mack's! Mack wanted to do science experiments. He loved science and always carried around a science pack - you never know when something might need explored.
    He went and got his science experiment book and we looked through some ideas. We were glad there were some cold weather ones.
    Mack had the idea of trying one in the house where it was warm and doing it again outside to see what differences if any there would be. His favorite was the mento in the soda bottle. Of course as the mom I saw it as the messiest one, and Luna would always say "they are only young once and it's easy to clean up."
    I suppose had it not been for the fact that Luna didn't mind and always was the first to grab towels or a broom to clean up the mess, I would have dragged my feet more.
    So we started in the house and timed how long it took for the soda to fizz up and out. Then we went outside and tried it again.
    Maria was getting tired so I took her in to lay her down for a nap.
    As I walked away, I could hear the boys gathering more data - how long it took to fizz, did the fizz go higher and further outside or inside.
    Maria layed down quickly. She was never a fussy sleeper, and I think she was asleep before I left the room.
    We agreed to spend some quiet time while Maria napped. The boys worked on more science stuff, while I curled up on the couch with our dog and looked out the window. I didn't realize how much I had missed seeing snow on trees and the ballet the sunlight performed as it danced around.
    Maria woke up about two hours later and after dinner, it was time to see what Luna wrote on his piece of paper.
    Mack reached for the paper and just as he started to open the paper, the lights went off!
    Both kids screamed as I scrambled to hold them. Luna got up to find the flashlight and some candles.
    Moments later the power came back on. I looked around for Luna but what I saw totally took me off guard...

Some insight on Camp

I wanted to share with my friends some words on my feelings toward Camp. In this instance, Camp is Camp Ronald McDonald. It is typically the only thing I am referring to when I use the word Camp. It is capitalized for a reason. It is a living, breathing entity and I am in love with it. I am going to include excerpts from a letter I wrote today on the topic:

Camp Ronald McDonald is an absolutely wonderful place. I was introduced to it in my youth to the fullest degree as my youngest brother was diagnosed with cancer and battled it, successfully, for several years. Through this tragedy, my family was introduced to Camp. We attended as a family in the first years where my parents were able to discuss their trials with like-minded people who could openly share their experiences and offer support.
Camp quickly became a place my two brother's and I looked forward to twice a year. It was especially therapeutic for my diagnosed brother. Due to being hospitalized most of the years he should have been learning to socialize and interact with other kids, he was awkward around others. I'm sure it was very hard for him to make friends with other kids who didn't understand what chemotherapy was, and why he was bald and why he wore a shirt while swimming. But at Camp, my brother was just like everyone else. His new friends also had a tube coming out of their chest that they would hide under a shirt at the pool back home, they also had stories of their favorite and least favorite nurse.
At 18, I was not able to attend camp anymore but did what I could to support the Camp in other ways; donating from my paycheck, spreading the word to anyone who would hear me out and in the last few years, putting together a team to walk in a fundraiser.
After eight years of dedicating myself to my job, I was laid off. Despite the weight of it, I tried to stay positive and was able to pull out one shining star; "you can go back to Camp as a counselor." Summer 2012 I was accepted. I still have the voicemail on my phone. 
I don't think there is a way to make you understand what Camp means to me, but this is me trying. Just writing this, recalling that glorious week, is making me misty-eyed. As the week approached, I remember feeling nervous and unprepared - like it was a mistake because in my eyes, I was taking on a huge responsibility, to live up to the standards of the wonderful, fun counselors I had as a camper.
Then, as the children were being dropped off, something in me - something very natural - clicked on. I interacted with them, helped the first-timers shake their nerves and find common interests with other kids.
I have never used the phrase "I feel blessed" in my life, yet this was the only phrase that felt appropriate at the end of my week. Volunteers are often described as selfless but I couldn't help but feel selfish because of everything I took away from this experience. I need it again. It felt so right to be able to make those kids smile and as much as I felt that Camp was a part of me before that week, it is now set in stone. I honestly feel addicted as many of the other volunteers do. There are a handful of people each session who fly in from other states and give up their only vacation to volunteer at Camp.
As crappy as being unemployed for almost three years feels, I am happy that it gives me the opportunity to be a counselor again this Summer; the second week of August. 

So if I seem overly-giddy, nervous, impatient or hyper in the next few weeks - you now know.