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The One With All The Updates

Erika and Madame Blueberry 
 The last few months have been crazy busy, full of adventures and the like. It would take forever to tell you everything that has happened, but I will attempt an overview. Since April I was a stage manager to an amazing show called The Lonesome West. I learned so much from the actors I worked with and the experience to produce theatre in the back of a records shop.
 Soon after the show closed I took my finals, loaded up my Cadillac (named Madame Blueberry) and left Ellensburg for the summer. I only had a few days to unload my college boxes and reload Madame Blueberry for my summer job.
Camp Lutherhaven
 Camp Lutherhaven! What an incredible, God arranged summer. There were days I wondered if I was up for the job, but the people I met and the experiences we shared were irreplaceable. When I was at college I made a comment to my mom that all I had to focus and worry about was me and how easy it was to only be concerned about myself. This summer there was very little time to focus only on me. My first cabin of nine, 5th - 6th-grade girls had me worried only about their needs. Questions such as "Are they sleeping okay?" "Did they make it safely to their activities?" "What do they need?" "Do they have their water? Are they drinking it?" It was one of the most beautiful emotions I have ever experienced. Our boss at camp made a comment that this summer we didn't deserve, we serve. that devotional was one that stuck in my head all summer as I worked with campers.
Believe it or not,
this is a staff meeting
 On the last Sunday, the person giving the message talked about the "one." He asked the counselors who was their "one" camper. Instantly I thought of the young boy I had the honor of connecting with one of my first weeks here. The one that was struggling to fit with his cabin and acted out. The one that got so excited when we splashed and slipped under the water. The one who LOVED gaga ball. The one I stayed up till midnight crying and praying over. The one camper I couldn't stop thinking about.
Family Photo 2018
Needless to say, my summer was incredible. From getting the job to experiencing each unique week of camp. If you want more in-depth stories about how I ended up at camp or more stories of my adventures at Lutherhaven, I will definitely tell you, but for here I will leave you with these.
 After camp, I was blessed to have about a month before I had to head back to Central. It gave me a chance to catch up with friends, walk around the beautiful roads of Latah, and get to go on vacation with my family to Long Beach, WA. We spent a week together getting to spend time laughing, relaxing and celebrating James's 16th birthday before college and work.

The first day of Sophomore Year
Now I have been back at college for about a week. It has been crazy busy since I got here. Moving into Kamola hall, organizing schedules (3 times!!!), getting settled and catching up with old friends. It has been fun to see and hear everything my friends have done over the summer.
Classes got off to a great start and I think I am really going to enjoy this quarter. One of the most exciting things that has happened since my arrival at Central is that I have been cast in a production of the Nutcracker. I am going to be a flower and I am incredibly excited.
Life has been a crazy, wild, adventure and I am excited to see where sophomore year leads. Hopefully, I will have more time to write.



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