<p>I think S2 is going to grow up about 5 years this summer. He is doing way too much stuff (see <a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/showthread.php?t=327890[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/showthread.php?t=327890</a> ), but it is amazing to me what I see happening in his life.</p>
<p>First, he went to church camp in Colorado. While hiking at 14,000 ft., a blizzard blew in , he couldn’t see the rest of the group, slipped and almost went off the side of the mountain. This got his attention. Also, there was another group at the camp composed of kids who were coming out of gangs, drugs, crime, etc. He found out they were real people and admired their determination to change their lives. During the teaching times, he was convicted with the realization that God was way too far down his priority list and that he wanted to change that.</p>
<p>He came home and interned for a week teaching summer video camp at the local public access t.v. station. He’ll also be doing that this week. Nothing earthshaking there.</p>
<p>Last week he went to a Civil Air Patrol encampment where he held a leadership position. There was a bad situation with some of the other student leaders and a couple of them were fired from their positions by the adult leadership and went home. The rest of the cadet staff all went into a tizzy and were threatening to leave the camp too, in support of those who were fired. Thinking through the situation, S realized he was there to lead the younger cadets, and it wasn’t fair to them to just leave because he was upset. He went around to the other staff members and they talked about this and all of them ended up staying. I am sure that he doesn’t even realize how much he learned through that about office politics, loyalty, duty, and a host of other things.</p>
<p>Next week he leaves for the YMCA’s Conference on National Affairs (a mock legislature type of activity). After that he’s home for a couple of weeks, then heads off to St. Petersburg, Russia, with other young people from our church to assist a church there. I will be so excited to see what he will learn through these upcoming activities!</p>
<p>I know that many of you have kids who are also having amazing experiences this summer and I wonder if you’d share what you see them coming away from these experiences with.</p>