I remember on my mission, having to choose either staying out 30 minutes or an hour too late at night and being able to attend the ward I was assigned to, or getting inside on time but having to go to church with a different ward. Staying out late is a big violation of missionary rules; there was no such rule against attending another ward (as long as you already had permission to be outside your area). Attending church with my ward was more important to me than the violation of the rule. Sometimes we have choices like that, and sometimes some rules should be broken for the greater good.

We actually had a long discussion on the importance of keeping to your standards even if you are tempted to do something that seems “good” but is not. One girl used the example of, “should I do something wrong if a girl manipulates me by saying that I am helping her out and accompanying her in a way that helps her?” Another girl said she has a friend who tries to manipulate her into going to rowdy drug and alcohol parties with her so “she isn’t the only girl there.” The young woman realized it is not her obligation to follow her friend off a cliff if her friend insists on jumping.

So, the girl feigning an accident helped the young women think about when and where it might be a good idea to help somebody — and when and where it is not.

I think the girls understood the exercise and that “temptations” do not normally come in the form of selfless service unto others.

Wait–we can lose grip of the iron rod by going to help someone who needs our help? Not sure I agree with the logic there. I hope in the future, when I have children who go to girls camp, that they would be the ones to let go of the rope to help someone they think is in need. Charity is better than blind obedience.

Otherwise, sounds like a terrific time.

I’ve spent a lot of time in YM and I’ve also noticed the differences between scout camps and YW camp and have wondered how to account for them. Maybe one reason is because boys go camping every month. It is difficult for scout leaders to go full throttle all the time because they know they’re going to have to do it again in three weeks. That might also explain why the pace at YW camp seems so frenetic — the leaders know they have to get everything in now or wait until next year.

In our stake, the biggest difference between scout camp and YW canp is the quality of the chow. A woman goes to girl’s camp as the full-time cook, and she excels at her calling. One meal I remember was chicken alfredo with pasta and cheesecake for dessert. I thought of that the next month when I was camping with the scouts, eating pork and beans out of a can.

We did a Lehi’s Dream activity like the one you mention here last year. It was a lot of work getting organized; I spent an entire afternoon trying to get extension cords over to the chosen tree, and then clambering around, putting Christmas lights up in it, and I had the cuts to show for it. But man, was it worth it. The result was a very powerful, humbling evening, one which brought the whole camp together in a very touching way. I got to hear my oldest, the high-schooler, bear her testimony for the first time. It was a lovely experience.