No Shirt, No Shoes...

Have any of you readers (the one or two that tune in regularly) ever been to summer camp?  As a child, there were several summers that I went to a camp with the youth group from my church.  I absolutely loved summer camp at Camp Wooten.  We would spend a whole week in cabins, away from home, with a group of people who really knew how to have a good time.  I remember we would go on hikes, there was rafting, play competitive games, etc.  (For those of you who actually know me, I know this sounds completely backwards as I shun the outdoors now, but at one time, I really enjoyed them.  I know, crazy how that works out huh?!?)

Today I decided to tell a story that may or may not cause my ears to turn a bright red from embarrassment and/or shame. I seriously have enough of these embarrassing stories to literally fill a room in the Department of Mysteries at the Ministry of Magic.  It's sort of hard to believe how awkward and gawky I am sometimes.  Unfortunately, every word of this story is true.  As you've probably guessed by the little intro above, this embarrassing story comes from my summer camp days.

 

This particular incident happened when I was probably 11, maybe 12.  I had been at Camp Wooten for maybe a few days.  Normally at camp, we all would be assigned different activities based on our cabin number.  We would stick to our cabins with the cabin head so that all the kids at camp got to enjoy all of the activities available at the camp.

My cabin had just returned from either swimming or rafting, I can't exactly remember which (give me a break, it was over 10 years ago).  Regardless of which activity we really had come from, we all needed to change into clean clothes before we headed to the chapel.

The chapel was where the whole camp gathered to do basically our youth group meetings.  This was, as I said, an activity that the whole ENTIRE camp attended together, no stragglers.

As we were changing in our cabin, we were chit chatting about whatever pre-pubescent girls talk about, I don't know, maybe barbie dolls or how our tomagachi's were doing.  That sort of thing.

On a side note, for those who don't know what a tomagachi was, it was a key chain sized digital pet.  As the tomogachi owner, you were responsible for feeding this little digital blob, playing with it, and cleaning up it's electronic fecal matter.  If you didn't, feed it, or play with the little creature, it died.  If you did play/feed/clean up fecal matter, the little blob grew into a bigger blob that had appendages.  After awhile, even with good care, the tomgatchi died, and then you got to start the whole process over again.  It was all the rage back in the day.  In fact, I think they are bringing them back, sort of like the Furby is all popular again now.  They even started an anime television show based on them in 2009 I believe.

Anyways, back to the story, we were all getting ready.  After I was all set, I tied my shoes, grabbed my Bible and journal, and I told the gals I would see them there. 

The way the camp was set up, the chapel was on the opposite side of the camp from the cabins.  The cabins were set in the woods area and then the chapel was across the way.  To get the chapel from the cabins, you had to walk across an open field that also housed the bathrooms, and the mess hall.  The open field to the chapel was probably a football field or two long.  It was pretty expansive. 

So there I was going on my merry way to the chapel, probably thinking about all the electronic fecal matter I was going to have to clean up from that damn tomigatchi when I got back from chapel, when the breeze picked up a little.  I realized, brrr, I was a little chilly and thought to myself, "I wish I had worn pants".  If only at that moment I realized how true that sentiment was.

***I stopped in my tracks and looked down in pure awww and horror***

I had forgotten to put on my bottoms!  I immediately spun around and ran as fast as my legs could carry me to my cabin.  I don't think I have ever run as fast as I did that day.  Lucky for me, I suppose, there was no one there when I arrived back at the cabin from my walk/jog of shame. 

Quickly, I pulled on a pair of athletic shorts and then dashed to the chapel to join the rest of the group. 

No one at camp ever mentioned this incident.  To this day, I don't even know if anyone at camp even noticed my running across the open field with nothing but a t-shirt, tennis shoes, underwear, and my Bible. 

Looking back, I wonder how the hell did I forget my pants?  I mean, didn't I notice when I was tying my tennis shoes that I was missing something?  And how is it that no one thought to mention to me as I left that I was forgetting one of the most important things that I needed for chapel.

I suppose they figured I knew, or maybe they thought I had all I needed.  How does that saying go... "No Shirt, No Shoes, No Service."