Learning Life Lessons at Camp

By Ryan Brown, UGM Youth Outreach Director

“Can I keep Him?” asked Marquise as he came walking towards me with a small Styrofoam cup.

As I glanced inside, I noticed a little water, some grass, and a tiny frog. The excitement in his eyes and the hopeful joy in his voice brought me to laughter, especially when I saw the ladybug in his other hand as he proclaimed, “I got him some food too!”

Unfortunately, this was day two of a five day camp. It was hot, and there was a lot of activity planned for the next few days. The frog would not have survived.

I mentioned to Marquise that small frogs like this were meant to live in the wild and be free. They weren’t like the ones you can buy at the pet store.

After a few moments of talking about it, we decided that he would keep it for a little while, and then really consider letting it go, letting it be free. He walked back to his cabin, a little downtrodden and disappointed yet still happy that he would have time with his new pet.

A little later that day, I heard the story of how Marquise caught his new friend.

Five months ago, Marquise’s father passed away. He lives with his mom, and camp was going to be a nice reprieve from the sadness that was around him.

When out fishing at camp, he just wasn’t catching anything. And so he prayed, “God, please show me you’re real and help me catch something.”

The time for fishing came to an end and still nothing. But on his way back, he noticed his new little friend and scooped him up. He DID catch something. And to him, God showed Himself faithful and real. He was overjoyed and, in some ways, confident his dad was in a good place and everything was going to be ok.

That evening, just before dinner, I was sitting alone just outside our dining hall, and along came Marquise – resolute and determined. He walked by me, to wash his hands - like he was about to prepare some great feast. When he came back, he approached and I asked what he was planning.

He looked me in the eye and said, “I’m going to let him go.”

He wasn’t joyful about it but had a small smile and glimmer in his eyes that showed he knew this was the right thing. Even his friends were going to be a part of the ceremony!

We never spoke about the correlation between the prayer, God showing Himself faithful, the frog, and the loss of his dad. But for that brief moment, when we locked eyes, we both knew that God was teaching us something profound about life, death, freedom, and the somber beauty of letting something go.

Kids learn about life and relationships at UGM Camp. Give an at-risk child an unforgettable week - send him/her to camp.