No more morning hike at 6:30AM. Just me sleeping in my sleeping bag till 7:00am wishing I could still take in the beautiful scenery for a last time. I wasn't close to being packed! My clothes and toiletries were spread throughout my entire cabin! Our last breakfast at camp could have been better by not adding eggs... but everything became a, "Happy Turtle" once we created a GIANT cup game group for the last time!
When packing, I found my socks scattered all around the cabin. Two in someone else's Nick & Kelly suitcase. One outside my cabin in the dirt. Three under my bunk, and none in my suitcase. After leaving my suitcase at the boat dock and seeing my cabin completely empty again is when it hit me, but not enough to make me cry... yet! After taking one more Cutter cabin photo with ten different camera's in front of the beautiful ocean's scenery, it was time to sign shirts. Thank god I brought five sharpies because I could not sign everyone's shirt with just one! I would lose them too easily, which I accomplished by loosing three out of the five I brought. I think this year, is the year I had the most signatures on my shirt. The whole back of my shirt was covered in different colored signatures and sweet messages from all my best camp buddies! After waiting for all the cabins to be packed and loaded on the dock we did what is called a, "Camp Sweep" where we line up in an, "orderly fashion" and footstep by footstep we walk across the entire campus to pick up every piece of trash so it looks as naturalistic as possible for the next two sessions taking place immediately after we departure.
Lunch didn't feel like lunch, it felt more like rushing-to-sign-shirts-while giving-ten-minute-hugs-to-the-people-I-won't-be-flying-back-to-phoenix-with(Ahem... Dj!) I ate my LAST, AMAZING lunch in five minutes, while rocking out to Bohemian Rhapsody, with my shirt on my back for free signing privileges. Finally, I was back under the tree where I originally starting signing shirts to wait for the session two campers to get off the Catalina Express while taking a, "Group CDC Picture" in remembrance of another year.
High fiving all the counselors, running to the boat I was finally leaving camp... sadly. On the boat I sat with Jarred, Dylan, and Alex with Emily in front of me and Christian watching Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part One beside me on a counselor's iPhone(sadly I missed out). Only Nick & Kelly campers were on this boat while the California campers.. Actually I don't know what happened to them, I guess they went on a different boat.
After arriving at the Catalina Express Dock I was settled into my traveling group with, "Woody" and we were finally on the bus on our way to John Wayne Airport. Usually we fly to LAX, but this year we flew U.S. Airways so maybe it was just cheaper. After arriving at the airport and being rushed through security we were just waiting to be boarded on to the plane to fly back to Phoenix to be greeted by our parents, who I was not excited to see.
After sitting with Emily, and Dylan, Jarred, and Alex sitting behind us tapping me on the shoulder every five seconds, and eating a DISGUSTING egg salad sandwich... we arrived at Sky Harbor. I was still able to keep my cool(you can't keep something you never had Shelby?) and continued to not cry, but I was so ready to burst into tears because, thinking about going to school the next day, feeling so out of place waking up in my bed instead of a sleeping bag, and not dancing to the Jackson 5 while eating a homemade meal every morning, made me feel sick! Literally. I felt like I was going to throw up after the flight, and I don't think that was due to turbulence. I was soon stepping off the same escalator that I usually end up shedding a tear on for the past seven years and what do you know? My parents weren't at the bottom to greet me. They were late. As usual. I found my suitcase, gave my last hugs, and then sat down next to all the other, "unwanted" children to wait for my parents.
Unfortunately, they eventually came to pick me up and I was forced to go back home. In the middle of the car ride home, I was describing the unbelievable feeling at camp to my dad and then I was struck. Hard. I burst out, full on, bawling wishing I was still at camp. Before I cracked, I was explaining to my dad how I'm so accepted in the world by everyone and when I'm there, I'm a completely different person, a more fun loving, crazy, outgoing person, and I just forget about heart disease and any other frustrations in my reality. Making me the happiest girl out there.
Dammit, now there's a tear in my eye. Miss you CDC... why did I have to leave you! I hope the third session campers are having the time of their life!
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