So! I was out of radar for close to five days, courtesy
Easter youth camp. The camp’s location was outskirts of Ibadan and in one word
I’m glad I actually camped. If you follow me on twitter and you read my last
six tweets or so last two Thursdays, you may have noticed I was on the road. I
journeyed to break bounds, I have never gone camping before and this was a big
step for me. Talking about camps, well I guess 99% of camps in Nigeria are
Christian camps (OK! No exaggerations) 95% just in case some Muslims do organize camps they’d have 2% , for the neutral camps that go the western way
they’d have 1% and the other 2% goes to NYSC (National Youth Service Corps) which
is mandatory though, I wish it wasn’t. This statistic is not a fact so please
don’t take it seriously.
So what was it like camping? I’m sure you want me to stop
beating around the bush and go straight to the point.
Firstly, the camp site was a school that is a branch of the
secondary school I attended. Guess how I felt? A strange mix of nostalgia and
dreadful memories, tell me about it.
So here I was doing camp for the first time ever, had
started coming out of the shell and creating a niche, we were going to be in
the same room. We got registered, a room, our mattresses, our meal and that’s
when I knew I was in camp. The food was okay, in fact good but NO PLATES, we had
to bring ours…if you guessed at all you were probably right… I had no plate but
a complete set of cutlery! (Someone said I used to behave like Agric).
With this little experience I had at the Easter Camp I’d
like to share a few things I learnt, a few tips and so on.
1.
Plan to be smart but don’t expect everything to
turn out perfect: With camp on my mind I planned to get the lower bed on the
bunk, get a bucket forgotten by a student and always get the best of things
provided early especially water, a clean bath and toilet. It turned out that
there were no bunks and all our mattresses were on the floor, I got no bucket
and had to queue to use any one I found, had to queue to use the bath and don’t
really wanna talk about the toilet (It wasn’t that bad though). I shunted every
queue that was going to stress me, only queued when there was no queue.
Expecting everything to be perfect would break your heart; it’s not your house!
2.
Make friends as you can: Our friends were once
strangers and we may meet the bestest of them or our future partners from
situations like the ones that go on in camp. Conflicts arising from the
pressure on the resources made available are common, don’t get overwhelmed by
the attitudes and reactions of others, that’s how best they know to get what
they want, instead of reacting to them respond,
you make more friends if you put things on the lighter note too. After
camp don’t expect your friends to stick that close, if they prove otherwise
don’t fight it if you want them, but be wise about people you make friends
with. Expect some really silly people too, if you don’t want them, don’t lead
them on but be kind about it.
3.
Be security conscious: Not everyone came with
your heart and mind. Avoid taking anything you really don’t wanna lose, showing
off wouldn’t pay, if that thing should get stolen please don’t cry. If you
wanted to make friends or command respect by the stuff you have within days not
up to a week? You should check yourself.
4.
Get involved: If you didn’t want to enjoy the
camp, why did you go in the first place? There would be divisions, duties and
sub duties in those divisions, sports, kitchen, recreational stuff, variety
night presentations. Do something, lead, follow, and participate. I was female
leader for my platoon even if it was just for the record and memory of the
camp. If you are going to break rules do it unknowingly. Have a good laugh,
enjoy the programs set up for you because they were set up for you and again
you’re already at the camp it would be immature acting all up that you’re
better than what you see, you would be proving otherwise.
5.
Don’t forget the essence of the camp: If you
would be attending a camp like the one I attended, it would be better you do
not forget the main reason the camp was organized. The camp would have a theme
and sessions would treat related issues to the theme. Key into the moment,
don’t get distracted if you are there to meet with God make sure you do so.
I did make friends and increased my network via the same
means, took only a few numbers I couldn’t promise that much commitment to all,
instead I got their social networks contacts and I think that would work just
fine.
I finally returned home and to complete civilization last
Monday, was received by my mum who gave the news that my immediate senior
sister had just given birth to a blessed boy who looks just like his father
that morning.
As for my crispy strips I got into the kitchen and saw that
my eldest sister had just finished frying the soft chicken I should have used
and there goes my crispy strips. Too broke (Oops! Didn’t just say that) to buy
another chicken and too tired to mak… abi mo ti se crispy strips ni!
I’m sleeping through Easter Monday in an unfruitful rest.
Well that’s how the plans turned out.
