Tinkling Spring Presbyterian Church

At the YMCA daycamp today I realized something ....
.... when I was talking to the counselors there, they were saying that the majority of the kids don't have the money to come to the daycamp, but without the care from the daycamp the parents couldn't go to work to pay for anything extra. Although the daycamp didn't seem structured all too well. I felt as if the kids were running rampant - being a camp counselor myself. There was no control over them. Sure the authority stepped up a few times, but it was all just threats to call parents or time out, nothing actually got resolve. Something did stand out though- when one boy accidentally knocked another over he just helped the slightly angry boy up from the ground, handed a kickball to him and said "have fun," that was one thing that stood out especially for Devon among other things.
But the main thing I realized today was that even though I deal with kids 24 hours a day and 5 days a week, the job here at the YMCA daycamp seems to take so much more effort just because they are the same wild and crazy kids that have no structure. I felt really appreciative of the place I come from and the experiences I have, but it was great to also see a difference in the setting. I hope to walk out of this mission trip with a sense of hope for the children I leave behind, and for the ones to come!
-Victoria Ray