Arrival. Sunday night
We pulled into the camp ground, noticing the host would be gone for a couple days, Don eagerly drove to the further most reaches of the camp to where "our" campsite sits. We were all disappointed to see a family setting up their camp in "our" campsite. Don had sent a letter ahead to the campground host, to try to reserve the site. But she never received it, and placed another family in "our" site while our name was on a foreign campsite, a place were no Cann had ever stayed before!.
"I'll just tell them they'll have to move, that I had this site reserved" Don said with no irony intended. We were all duly horrified, explaining that there was no way he could tell those people to move just because we wanted it! "Well, I'll just go talk to them". Our reply to his request for someone to go with him was a resounding "No thanks, we'll just wait here!" Then Barry; good, brave, reasonable Barry, volunteered for combat duty. "I'll go with you, dad."
After explaining how this had been "our" campsite for 25 years, and how we had tried to reserve it, and how it was Don's birthday, and how we had driven 900 miles all the way from Utah, and then adding one hundred dollars and help in moving their entire camp including a pile of firewood 6 feet high, the site was indeed,"ours" for the week.
They were an Evangelical Christian family(whom I will call The Christians) and I must say I was impressed by their charity, notwithstanding the one hundred dollars of blood money. I still felt guilty whenever I encountered them. The side of the camp they moved to was shadier, having the effect of more mosquitos and less stars to be seen at night. The family next to them was a noisy family, screaming kids, loud adults playing their loud music and the way to the water was circuitous. We were right next to the water. It wasn't an even trade, even with the hundred dollars thrown in.
On Thursday ,day 4, the Christians left for home.When we returned to camp, lying on a chair by the fire-pit was what appeared to be a note , written on notebook paper. Actually, the paper was folded around a c.d. case. The Christians had left us a departing gift. It was a kind "happy vacation, nice to have met you" note. The c.d. cover was a photo of a beautiful mountain scene with Thank You spelled out in a blue font, the t in Thank you, forming a cross on a hill, ala Calvary. The titles included, Thank You and You Gave Up All. Indeed.thanks to my son http://www.thefooze.blogspot.com/ for the camp photo!
5 comments:
I love Christians :) You know, all my urging to say "no" aside, I'm feeling very drawn to camping. I haven't been camping in years, but Bill and I don't fight while camping. He's in his element and it seems very calming. I think I'm going to make him take me camping. It won't be hard to convince him. LOL
We have a "spot" on Beaver Mountain where our family always went and we love it.
I'm sort of with your husband on this, Cathy, because if he reserved that particular site, he should have had it. And he shouldn't have had to pay for it. My train of thought would have totally echoed his on that deal.
I love your book recommendation. This is really a well done blog.
annegb, I edited the post to make it more clear. the site was never really ours.But I wasn't upset with Don, the guilt was my own little gem! haha
Go camping! Take puzzle books and novels and many naps.
I am so glad that you have chronicled your adventure...for the grandies.
And who ponied up the hundred?
hehe, left that part out...
Don said he'd give them 50. they stalled.
Barry said he'd give 50 more. With the 100 they said they'd do it.
The other night, Don said "...and Barry still hasnt given me that 50."
It's very interesting to read Barry's version and mine.
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