SPEC 2008

Good Morning SPEC Fans,



It’s starting out another cool and refreshing morning here in Lamoni and it’s just you and I right now, the whole place is sound asleep. It is a regular morning here so this place will be humming very shortly. The washers and dryers at the end of the hall are busy churning and tumbling out fresh shirts and stuff for the camp today.



Yesterday, Tuesday, was the first of two sleep in mornings here at SPEC, morning celebration is cancelled, so the campus woke up and began to move an hour later than usual.



It was breakfast sausage morning!! This reporter’s favorite. The scrambled eggs were either plain or had ham chunks in them and we had breakfast sausage (far too many). Oatmeal was out yesterday and as usual, fruit, juice and milk. Of course some of the “weak in the faith” folks still have to have a cup of sin with breakfast.



The SPEC Today theme class was Someday is now……..so create peace. We divided up into birth month groups again, and had some discussion and defining of attributes of personal peace that can hopefully then translate into a more community and global peace. Then we began a cool exercise. We each were given a wrist size piece of plastic string and a allowed to select colored beads to represent each of these seven facets of peace: Jesus’ modeling peace, peace for the planet, personal peace, peace for our school/workplace, peace for friends, peace for family, and peace for community. Each group was then assigned one of the seven facets to discuss, and write a prayer to God for that facet. My group had Jesus’ modeling peace. After some discussion each group selected a camper to refine the discussion into a prayer and pray it aloud to the group. It was a powerful experience with wonderful rich communication with God. Hopefully your camper will come home with the peace bracelet still on. This reporter is still wearing his.




Yesterday, card making seemed to be a popular class for the Rockies boys and many headed off to make and decorate various kinds of cards. Another popular class for the first elective is a yoga class with a good representation of boys and girls. Pyrography, creating art with electric wood burning pens, is also a popular class and the projects run the gamete from simple to very ornate and complex.



For lunch you could pick hot turkey with dressing, gravy, and veggies, or a nice salad from the salad bar, or each day a popular selection is to make a simple or multi ingredient quesadilla and even toast it in one of those heated press things. This reporter didn’t peak in the cold lunch line yesterday.



The Rockies started the afternoon with softball again, and were not sure which professional team came disguised as campers, but needless to say we were not in their league. We had some players on soccer teams, one on a basketball team, and our own coed volleyball team. Sadly both of my quizbowl teams were eliminated yesterday in, well not so close matches.



Supper was fish patties (that I made into a fish sandwich with tarter sauce and cheese), French fries, corn, mac-n-cheese, and salad and dessert.



Last night was the all camp worship at the sports field and after some singing and music, President of the Community of Christ, Steve Veazy spoke with us about a new exciting use of the www to promote peace. Go to www.peacesupportnetwork.org and check out the new website. Sign in and browse around to check it out.



After worship was track and field as well as soccer under the lights. Various running events and lengths and relays, long jump, shot put, and discus were a few of the events. Two teams also played a soccer match.



It makes it a little later night by the time we get the kids in the dorms and have devotions so they tend to start out a little slow the next morning. So it’s time to go make some noise and wake them up.



We’ll meet again in the morning for more news and views from SPEC; until then have a glorious day and remember to create peace in your various communities today,



Your faithful SPEC reporter,

Bob