Learning at church camp

I was cross stitching this morning and found myself thinking about church camp, which I attended every summer from ages 7 to 16. It was a very traditional religious environment, with mandatory morning and evening prayers, plus daily services.

It was also co-ed, but during the day, the boys and girls were separated for different activities. Most of our afternoons were focused on folk arts and customs: needlework, gardening, storytelling, dance...

This is where I first learned, in the most Orthodox environment imaginable, that certain patterns and symbols could be embroidered onto clothing for protection, while others might be chosen to invite love.

I had a close girlfriend at camp who I really admired. She was endlessly defiant, always questioning the adults, "Why can't we take the boys' classes? And why can't I ever be ordained?"

I was so proud of her, but also selfishly relieved when nothing ever came of it, because I couldn't imagine giving up a second of craft time for theology and service training when I could be decorating eggs.