It's 6:30 AM on a Monday and I'm contemplating faking sick so that I don't have to go to school. I was up late writing an essay, but I can always just email that to my teacher. I was supposed to learn about a new concept in math, but I can always look at my friend's notes. Skipping today wouldn't be so bad...Until I remember that I love Mondays. At exactly 7:07 PM every Monday, I get to sing, dance, play absurd games, watch or be a part of hilarious skits, and learn about Jesus. This is the life, this is Young Life.
At first Young Life can seem a little weird, and I'll admit I was really nervous before entering my first Young Life Club, (we call it club for short). I was a freshman and I was still getting used to the whole concept of high school. I walked into the building to see several upperclassmen standing around laughing and socializing with everyone. I was greeted by a few Young Life Leaders, and was surprised at how welcoming the leaders and upperclassmen were to the freshmen. I went from being terrified of the juniors and seniors at volleyball practice, to feeling comfortable and at ease around the juniors and seniors at club.
At exactly 7:07, everyone was instructed to get in a circle. We were told to pass around containers of baby food, and when the music stopped, if you were holding the baby food, you actually had to eat it. I was horrified! I was so confused as to why these adult leaders would make us eat baby food. To my surprise, all the upperclassmen were actually trying the baby food if it landed on them, and they were laughing while doing it. I was lucky enough that I didn't have to try it that night, but I couldn't help but laugh along with everyone that ate a spoonful of that disgusting squash baby food.
When the game was over, everyone ran over to one of the leaders who had already started to play a Taylor Swift song on his guitar. There were lyrics projected on the wall, and immediately everyone started screaming and dancing like madmen to "You Belong With Me." My friends and I sang and danced along, with not one worry that we looked stupid, because to be honest, everyone looked stupid. Between songs we would sit down to watch our leaders and upperclassmen perform in skits where they were dressed like barbies, truck drivers, and skiers. Twenty minutes before club ended, an upperclassmen stood up in front of everyone and kindly introduced one of the leaders. The leader started with a story about her childhood, and found a way to relate that to a story from the Bible. She ended club with a question for everyone to think about before the next club, which I would quickly learn is something she would do at the end of every club.
I left that night thinking, "How is this free? How is this actually a real thing?" I couldn't remember the last time I had that much fun. Those were my exact thoughts after every club for the next four years.
Along with club, we had Young Life breakfasts, a tradition of waking up early once a week to go to our favorite local breakfast spot at 6 AM before school. There was campaigners, which was a meeting on Sunday nights where we would sing some more, and talk even more in depth about our lives, Jesus, and some stories from the Bible. Then there was camp.
Every summer, a huge group of teenagers from my high school and surrounding high schools would get on a coach bus for eight hours to travel to upstate New York. My freshman and senior year we went to Lake Champion, and my sophomore and junior year we went to Saranac Village. These weeks were the absolute best weeks of my life. We would go water tubing, parasailing, sliding, blobbing, swinging, and jump off high objects on the ropes course. Not to mention club was like our high school club on steroids. There were also themed days and nights that were kept a secret throughout the week. I was so fortunate enough to have the opportunity to go to camp four times, and I plan on working at a young life camp in the future.
Even though there was so much to do at camp, my favorite part was always cabin time. At the end of each day, we would sit in a circle with our leader and cabin, and talk about our day. We would talk about what we did that day, our favorite part, and about the talk from club. This was a time to get close to our peers, close to our leader, and maybe even close to Jesus. There were many tears during this time, but by the end of cabin time, I know for a fact that I always felt loved by everyone in that room, and loved by Jesus. I will always be grateful for the feeling I had during and after cabin time.
I always think back to everything I experienced through Young Life, and I can't help but want to go back sometimes. I made incredible friendships with people I would have never met outside of Young Life. Once in a while, I still get a text from one of my leaders asking to meet for coffee, or to come over for breakfast. My relationship with my leaders is so special and is something I will cherish all my life. High school wouldn't have been the same without them, and I know they will always be there for me, and they will always be my leaders.
