Spider Sniffing

I made it back from my Girl Scout Outdoor Training in one piece. I’m tired and sore. I learned a lot of great things. I learned that I am not camping without a cot. The ground is just too hard for these old bones. Wasn’t it softer when I was a kid?

I learned how to tie different knots, do a couple of nature arts and crafts, how to start a fire, set up and take down a tent, and, of course, spider sniffing. I arrived at camp early Saturday morning and it was non stop all day long. We cooked a great meal on the camp stove and made dessert in the fire.

The ladies doing the training with me were all really nice. We all worked together and had a great time sharing information and learning together. Soon, we got used to seeing spiders crawling on each other and brushing them off became automatic.

Saturday evening, after we ate and cleaned up, we all met around the big camp fire. We exchanged stories, sang songs and learned about spider sniffing. I must say, I was a little apprehensive when the trainers started taking us, one at a time, away from the group for “spider sniffing”. No one wanted to volunteer. I ended up going fifth. I wasn’t worried about it by that time. The other ladies seemed to have enjoyed it.

I started walking around with my “spider sniffing teacher” and she held the flashlight up against her the side of her face (level to her eye) and was shining it all around. She asked me if I could smell it. Of course, I didn’t smell anything. It was a joke, as I thought. What you are actually doing is looking at where the light is shining and trying to spot a small glimmer or glitter on the ground. When you spot one, you walk over to it, leaving the light on the spot, and when you get to it you should be able to see a little spider.

I so look forward to doing this with my daughter and the girls in my Girl Scout troop. Today went quick. We cooked and ate breakfast. Then we cleaned up and packed up everything. Down came the tent and we loaded all of our stuff into our vehicles. We had a hike and did our closing activities. That was it. I drove home and was excited and energetic when I walked through the door.

After telling my husband all about my weekend, I ate, and started to feel the affects of my camping experience. I woke up this morning before the sun came up because the ground was so hard. Saturday night, we all went to bed really late. As I started to wind down, soreness in every part of my body started settling in. My kids wanted to go to the park. Well, I found the energy, some how, for a short trip to the park. Then it was home, and I crashed. As I am writing this, I am contemplating going straight to bed and letting hubby take care of everything. Will I be camping again in the future? You bet I will. Only, next time, it will be with a cot and I will be setting the schedule.