I overheard someone say that their grandchildren referred to the Highlands as "Granny
Camp." I want to include the men, so I'm going to go a step furthur and suggest "Grandparent's Camp."
Thank about it. In a child's mind and even in my mind, the title, "Grandparent's
Camp" will fly.
After all, we have golf, swimming, aquatic classes, art, crafts, Bible study, yoga,
ceramics, memoir writing and cardio class. There are also various other games such as horseshoes, ping pong and
tennis. I am sure I have left out quite a few activities, but the idea is that we can take part in so many great
activities.
This reminded me of when I went to camp. I was probably about nine years
old.
We could swim twice a day. The afternoons were filled with craft projects
and canteen. Canteen was a big thing because we could buy our own candy and soft drink without parental supervision.
We had to keep our cabin clean and then at night we would gather around the campfire and sing. The singing part was bad
for me. That was when I would get a lump in my throat and so want to see my parents. One week of camp seemed like
an eterninty to me. I counted the days and told myself not to cry.
However, I do remember that I could forget being homesick for a while at night.
After we returned from out campfire, something magic took place. We saw these shimmering, beautiful insects that were
like tiny flashlights darting about and in and out of the trees. We called them lightening bugs. We would catch
them in a jar and be amazed and fascinated by their beauty. Also, the fact that we could see them in pitch dark was
magical.
Here it is:
"Lightning Bugs are in the beetle family. They are commonly called fireflies and
are actually attempting to call a mate when they blink.The technical name for their blinking is bioluminescence.I think I’d
rather call it blinking, it’s easier to pronounce.Fireflies make what is called cold light. That means it has no ultraviolet
rays and is pale or reddish green. It can also light up the area so efficiently that it has a 96 percent rating.
Fireflies have a lot of cousins. There are more than 2000 kinds of them alive in
the world. Most of them are found in wet areas, or in woodlands where they can offer better food sources to the larvae.
Most fireflies are brown and have very soft bodies rather than hard like most beetles.
Females look very much like males.
Some kinds of fireflies come out in the daytime rather than at night. They land
on trees and shrubs and can only be seen in shadowy areas.
Fireflies mate in the air or on low
shrubs."
Now, getting back to my childhood camp experience. Here is the difference
in going to camp when I was nine and living here at The Highlands (Grandparent's Camp). I do not get homesick
here like I did at camp. This is such a wonderful place to live. (Of course it is the people that make it wonderful).
However, I think my "Grandparents Camp" would be complete, if only I could
see one of those fascinating, glow-in-the-dark lightning bugs . Let me know if you see one or have a comment about
this article. My e-mail is: franlarson@gmail.com.
