Summer Camp in Badian

Many things can wait, the child cannot. 

Today marks the first time that I attended the meeting of the Cebu City Taskforce on Streetchildren, representing The Share A Child Movement, Inc not as a little girl accompanying Lola Sising or Auntie Nina anymore, but as the Executive Director.

I am amazed to remember all those memories of long ago rushing back like deja vu, sitting obediently beside Lola Sising patiently waiting for their meeting to end so that we can eat halo-halo at a restaurant along Capitol Site before heading back to the house in N Bacalso.

For years, Share A Child has been part of this taskforce, which is now composed of 22 child-focused NGO members.  I can still recall the very first time in the 1990s when I attended the Summer Camp as a participant.  I was an odd child out because I did not look the part of a streetchild or scholar, nor did I behave like the other kids. The facilitators were afraid that I was too "delicate" to participate in the rough games.

Scout Damaso had his boy scouts and girls scouts to lead the different teams of boys/girls of mixed agencies.  We would learn our yells, scamper into formation, suffer squats as punishment and enjoy games with other teams.

Coming from a middle income family, immersion among children who barely had food to eat was a memorable experience and I have never been the same since. Fellow campers pointed out to me my inadequacies such as not knowing how to cook or launder my owm clothes. Plus, I didn't know how to speak Cebuano.  They shared how hard life was, walking to school because they had no money for jeepney, going to school with an empty stomach, wearing uniforms and using books of their older siblings... Some even selling cigarettes in the streets at night just to earn what they could.

I realize that a lot of kindness, good food, engaging company and opportunities to showcase their talents are some of the things that draw children to look forward to the annual summer camp.  This afternoon we were discussing how to divide the accomodation among the agencies. We realized that camping is not supposed to be comfortable, but the experience of sleeping out there with fellow campers, possibly exposed yo heat, rain or insects, becomes teaching grounds for life.  

The lessons we learn from the summer camp show us how to become morally upright and productive citizens of the world: how to treat fellow human beings with kindness, how to share what little you have, how to be brave enough to show who you really are no matter how different you are from everybody else, how to stand up for what you believe in, and how to give the best effort to achieve you goals.