Animal Crackers At Camp
Dandelion
"It's off to camp we go!"
A song that echoed cheerfully down the aisle of the bus.
Our final destination, Camp Dandelion nestled just of highway 1 with a
view that defies imagination. It
was a long drive down highway 1 heading southbound from Oregon State, but by far
the most adventurous one. The clear
sky, jagged cliffs and wide- open shimmering sea kept everyone's faces pressed
firmly against the bus windows.
This was no ordinary bus trip, and a bus full of bugs singing camp songs
in harmony was not what you would expect to see on this coastal highway.
But none-the-less you couldn't help but stare and listen to all the joy
that emanated from that little green bus.
Inside the scent of peanut butter and jelly sandwiches filled the isles
as our stomachs waited in anticipation.
Sitting nearby, "Waffles The Weeble" reached into his backpack
and pulled out his fuzzy slippers. Next
to him, "Princeton The Preying Mantis" with his green slender body
checked to make sure he hadn't forgotten his favorite purple shorts he loved to
wear. He quickly used his front
legs as a trap to catch a slow moving insect crawling next to him
When we finally arrived at Camp Dandelion, the youth director filed us
out one by one. He welcomed us to a
mystical-magical day at camp. Instantly
we noticed an impressive collection of dandelions covering the grassy meadows
with a soft golden glow. We also
noticed the annoying sounds of mosquito's called "Skeeters" here at
camp. They launched their attacks
by diving head first across the golden meadows.
At camp the bugs' gathered together in a group to play educational games
on the camp's computers. Others
watched Sand Pipers running in and out of the ocean waves.
Some fished and hiked on seemingly endless trails, while "Warner The
Bookworm" and his group read books and sang camp songs they wrote
themselves.
Here is how their song goes…
It's off to camp we go!
There's endless
seas and sand
We'll march
through meadows of bright yellow,
On our way
through Dandy Land.
We're all aboard
the bus!
We're campers
all the way.
With cliffs,
beach and ocean waves,
We're in for a
mystical-magical day.
There's fishing,
hiking and fun in the sun,
With reading and
singing songs too.
Peanut butter
and jelly and animal crackers,
At camp there is
so much to do!
So it's off to
camp we go!
There's endless
seas and sand.
We'll march
through meadows of bright yellow,
On our way to
Dandy Land!
This had become quite the tourist attraction and visitor's came from
miles away to see this impressive collection of bugs and dandelions.
The camp director announced that it was lunch- time!
All the bugs gathered together in a rather large circle.
An interesting Ant wearing large sunglasses passed out delicious animal
crackers in unusual bug shapes and sizes as the visitor's snapped irresistible
pictures.
A nearby weeping willow tree offered the only shade as we enjoyed our
peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. We
included one delicious dandelion salad we created from our very own camp grown
herbs and vegetables. There's no
doubt that by the time the bus was boarded for home, we had made lots of
friends, some interesting discoveries and came to appreciate all the beauty life
has to offer. The tourists left
singing camp songs and learned to appreciate the smaller wonders in life. Life here was certainly a shared adventure.
Off we went on our long journey home.
Copyright
1997 by Author Patti Tricoli
