The Fourth of July

The holidays are the time for family to connect. This phrase we have heard for eons. Is it always the truth, however? This year Amanda, one of my best friends, invited me to spend the Fourth of July with her family on their annual camping trip.


Now, I come from a scouting family. I have been through a decade of Cub Scout, Boy Scout, and Venturing outings. I have learned that there is nothing better than a dry tent, a good sleeping bag, and a nice campfire. Amanda’s family believes that RV’s are the way to go. Period. She actually laughed when I told her that my experiences with an RV are virtually nil. When my mother and step-father bought an RV I only slept in it once. They also believe in bringing electric sources of entertainment. While I just brought my spiral, scriptures, a couple of books, and a pair of good walking shoes. So, this was going to be a new experience for me.

Nevertheless, I am always up to a challenge.

Now, before I proceed with my musings, I should probably briefly describe those I spent time with…..

I will start with the family patriarch. His name is Larry. He is Amanda’s step-father and has been married to her mother for about five years. Anyone, who knows anything about my family are likely to be more than acquainted with my step-father. These two men are so alike that not only would they get along fabulously, but would probably be friends for life.

Next is the mother. Connie works in the medical field, which is quite handy really. She is truly an interesting character. She can be a real handful at times, and other times she is rather maternal and sweet. You never knew if she would take something the wrong way, one second she could be laughing, the next screaming. It felt like being in a mine-field, all you’re trying to do is not to upset the mines.

Heather, Amanda’s younger sister is another complex individual. She lives in Louisiana with her father and is here for the summer holidays. She is also a major drama queen. If she is more than five feet from her cell phone and/or iPod …. yeah.

Heather’s friend Melody is somewhat amusing to observe. She is an athlete who thinks she is too skinny. When she complains that she can’t gain any weight there are a couple of us who dearly want to tell her to shut it. She also giggled at everything and anything, especially when Larry would provoke her. It was exceedingly entertaining.

On Wednesday morning, I was picked up by Amanda and we finished up the last of the preparations. Then we all crammed into Larry’s pick up and drove down to Lake Billy Chinook.

When we got there, we dropped off the RV so Larry could retrieve the boat. He dropped Amanda and me at the nearby day park so we could take a dip. After a time, we walked a mile back to camp to wait for the others to return with the boat. When they showed up, we set up camp while Larry took the boat down to the docks. After he came back we relaxed for a time. At that point I ended up getting scared spit less when he asked me what religion I was apart of. I asked him if it would help me or hurt me to answer. He said he didn’t know. After taking a deep breath and bracing for impact I told him that I was LDS. He clarified by asking if I was a Mormon. After I affirmed it, he said that there is a cure for Mormonism. I replied that there was also a cure for Baptist (everyone in the group but me was a Baptist). Thankfully, he didn’t freak out over me being a Mormon, but he made it clear where he stood with it. I thanked him for being good about that fresh piece of information. Most parents flip when they find out that their children are friends with someone like me. Actually, this trip provided an excellent missionary opportunity for me. I was asked many questions and answered them to the best of my abilities and with the tools I had.

Later on that evening we went inner tubing. We took turns on the three-seater. The problem was that the bottom of the tube was just a flap so the water would pummel the bottom of the tube. I had several bruises on my backside. It felt like someone bent me over their knee and whacked me several times with a belt…..ouch!

Thursday, we went out onto the lake for a few hours and tried the individual tube. Larry spent several minutes trying to buck me off the thing. I ended up getting a lot of airtime. I also used my weight to keep from flying off. Then after several minutes I landed on the back of the tube with half my body in the water and before I could pull myself back on he jerked me into another wake and I flew right into the water. Everyone was impressed with how long I stayed on. I had a blast!


When we went back to camp, we all passed out in our bunks. Then we made dinner and Connie and Larry went to town to get some things. To pass the time Amanda and I went for a walk and wrote in our spirals for a while.

Friday, we once again were out on the lake. That day we tried wake boarding. Melody managed to not only get up, but stayed up for several seconds. The rest of us were unable to even get up. On my last attempt , the rope caught me around the neck and my life preserver also went around my throat. I immediately let go of the rope and was in an awkward position. My feet (still attached to the board) was right behind my head and I was trying to keep the life preserver from choking me. Larry managed to help me get on the boat while I was coughing and wheezing. I lost feeling in my right arm and hand, had a red mark around my throat and ended up with a mighty painful sunburn (blisters and all).. Connie told me that I was to stay indoors for the next couple of days. So when they went back to the lake Amanda and I wrote in our spirals and talked. When they got back at dusk, we made a fire and made smores . Everyone also got a kick out of the fact that I wore my water polo goggles so that my eyes would be protected from the smoke. I had the last laugh when a couple of them got smoked out of their chairs. J

On Saturday, our last full day. I spent the day in the RV reading and writing. When the others came back Larry, Connie, Amanda and I played a card game called Phase 10 (kinda like rummy). I got creamed big time. Then we all went on the boat and sped around the lake for a couple of hours. When we came back we made a fire, cooked bratwursts and smores.


Sunday morning, we ate a quick breakfast and broke down camp. We unpacked the RV and then I was invited to stay over an extra night. We watched Fool’s Gold (which was okay…) and went to bed.

I hope all of you enjoyed the Fourth. Thanks for reading!


C-Ya!

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