Camp Day 8 ~ Relay For Life 2012

Camp Day 8 ~ Relay for Life 2012

Team Purple Tears

I've been putting this post off for a while now. Even now I'm sitting here with a knot in my throat and a trembling jaw. This post is going to dip into some personal deep set emotions. 

The last 'real day' of summer camp is always the day Relay for Life falls on. Which I personally find amazing. We're all a part of The Purple Tears. It's our personal group for Relay. We all have special shirts, and often others create gifts for the team. Doing this as a camp and even community touches me deeply. You see.. relay for life is something that I hold dear in my heart. In my real life I have lost more than I'd like to count to cancer. I relay for so many family members and friends and those I do not even know. It's more to me than walking, staying up all night, the silly skype calls to keep our 'lids from drooping and the general fun... it's about finding a cure and for those who have lost the battle. This year it was particularly important to me. My Aunt was fighting a very short and aggressive battle with lung cancer. I lit a luminary early that morning on the track for her and said a small prayer as a I did my lap around the track. Giggling and talking with our massive skype call and generally have a blast - yet she was ever present in my mind as I walked. The mid-afternoon I got a phone call in real life and muted my microphone ... it was one of those calls that has you drop to your knees. It was THE call. It was my Mum .. she told me that my Aunt had lost her battle with lung cancer that morning. She had gone home to be with God. I don't think I said anything for a good five minutes. Just sat in silence as the tears rolled down my face. I quietly hung up the skype call and went to my Husband in real life.  This is a relay I will never. ever. forget. This is why we relay. Part of me wonders if that when I lit her luminary if perhaps.. that light was her. She is no longer in pain and in the save haven of the Lord in Heaven. I will miss her beyond words.. but I know that she is happier and cancer free now. 

This post seems unorganized and scattered to me... but I felt as if I needed to do this if not for me.. for her. For Relay for Life. This is why we do it.

I've added some various photo's from Relay. I wasn't able to stay or gather many.. but I would like to extend a huge heartfelt thank you to all of my friends and family who were there for me in support during this difficult time. I thank you all from the bottom of my heart. Your love means the world to me. To know that there are people across the country/world in our community with such open and loving hearts warms my soul.

Thank you.

Love, 

Meg Hadlee

The Luminary for my Aunt

Skype Call 

Purple Tears Site

December, Jill and I dancing just before my phone call... 

 Always relay. Always say I love you's.. always be grateful.

Camp Hardknock Day 7!

Camp Hardknock Day 7

It's official we've been here at camp for a week! My first event of the day was "Silly Fashion Show" I had the kids all meet up in a skydome. I set up a catwalk and a table with myself as a judge and Miss Honey as another. I had 2-3 contestants up at a time. They were given a category and 5 minutes to prepare an outfit to wear. They walked down the runway and showed off their creations. Then all met at the end of the runway and the judges deliberated. This event was so much fun 

Honey and I

Work the runway!

Giving an example on posing at the end of the runway.

Darla went as Miss Jill! The category was Camp..so she came out looking like Jill! 

Camp Category.. Miss Jill and a tree! 

The bath category.. Avenge comes out as a duck.

Bath category.. Tristan comes out IN the bath! 

Bath category.. Loochie comes out ready for a bath!

Diner time! Psyche comes out as Spaghetti! 

Giselle as a fork in a tutu! 

Animal category - Loochie as Beast from X-Men

Animals: Juniper as a Nyan cat herd! 

Animals : Arianna as a turkey! 

 After the kids were done..they decided that the counselors should have a turn. Giselle and Avenge sat at the judges table and gave us our category. Hairy. Hairy? Really, HAIRY?!

 Soo... Honey came out with HUGE hair.

 Afterwards we just messed around and acted silly on the runway until...

We made linden skins out of our inventory!

Me with  my beautiful 'do and Honey.. well, bald.

Later on in the evening we had the camp dance. It's a fun chance to get to dress up with everyone at camp and let loose!

Giving my lil Ivy a big squeeeeze! 

Dancin' with my baby! 

 After all of the events came a ceremony which is near and dear to my heart. Friendship Night. It's a beautiful night where we all come together and share our thoughts, emotions, and feelings we've all shared over the week. We gather outside of the cabins wearing special shirts, and carrying a candle. All walking in silence to the campfire. 

[18:28:06] Camp Fire: The fire grows as Meg Hadlee adds their flame to the fire

Friendship night is always so special. So many people give so many heartfelt speeches. I thought about giving one myself... but I didn't feel prepared enough. Maybe I will write out my speech I had in my head in a post soon. We were all so pumped after friendship night that cabin wars was pretty amazing! It was a triathlon! They kids did a GREAT job!

Finish Line!

 The camp awards and medals were given out!

Fireworks!

 Since it was the last night at camp we all slept on the beach! I read a few stories.. one about toots.. one about Sleepy Kitties.. which I was supposed to read in an Russian accent.. but I wasn't able to do properly. I disappointed so many little kids.. I will brush up on it and get it right for next camp! Then, I read - Miss Rumphius one of my favorite books!

Goodnight, Moon.

 It was such a beautiful night. Waking to my lil Ivy sleeping in my sleeping bag, and feeling so very loved from friendship night.

Love,
 Meg