The Bravery Award

Adventure Guide Camp

This year is Caroline's first year in Adventure Guides.  She's being sponsored by a friend's dad so that she can participate since you have to have a dad.  Let me back up for just a little bit.

Before Jason passed away, Caroline was my go getter and her brother was the homebody.  She would go and spend the night just about anywhere and had a list of people she would call to see if they would let her have a sleep over.  She was so confident.  However, one night she went to sleep over at a friend's house and Jason had to go back to the hospital.  He never came home.

So after that, Caroline would not go and sleep over at any body's house except family.  And usually it was a fight to get her to do that.  She was afraid that something bad would happen while she was gone and she didn't want that. 

So, Adventure Guide camp was a huge step for her.  She, of course, hemmed and hawed about it.  Making comments like, "I'm going to miss you." and "What if something bad happens?"  But I stuck to my guns and insisted she go.  Luckily, she was going with her circle and there were several other girls (from other circles) that she knew that were going.  So, it was great.

She did gang-busters!  There were some slight weepy moments, but she quickly recovered and moved on.  She won the tug-of-war, got to go horseback riding, rode in a canoe for the first time, shot a bow and arrow, and had an all around great time.  But the crowning achievement was the Rabbit skin.  She was given the Award for Bravery at the camp, because she had persevered through a rough six months and went on a camp out without her mom.  She took it to school to show her teacher today.  We're going to have to attach it to her walking stick, but her confidence level has shot up 1,000%.  She even wants to go to a sleep away camp this summer because, as she put it, "I know I can do it now.!"