Camp Esther
August 21-22, 2015
By Victoria Parry, age 11
On our way up to Camp Esther, my mom (Chaillé Parry), Jennifer & Trissy Jacobsen and I were eager to learn about Queen Esther. When we got there, we got to our cabins and picked out our beds. The cabins were split in groups. Our ward shared a cabin with the Welby 6th ward. We unpacked and then got ready for the fireside. We sang fun camp songs like "Baby Shark" and "Alligator" and also sang a song called "Esther's Courage." Then we shared our ward skits. One ward did 100 dresses from the book and it was about courage. My ward did one called "The Invisible Bench." It was when everyone goes and sits on an invisible bench but then someone says, "Oh, but I moved it over there yesterday," which makes everyone sitting on the bench fall to the ground.
An elderly couple did a lesson on Queen Esther. Queen Esther is one of the most beloved characters of the bible. Esther was a Jewish queen of the Persian king Ahasuerus. Ahasuerus is traditionally identified with Xerxes I, in the time of the Ahasueres empire. Esther was Jewish and needed to have the courage to stand up to the king who wanted to all Jews killed.
After the fireside, we all went back to our cabins. In my cabin, we played UNO and went to bed. Good thing I brought an air mattress because the beds are wood. I couldn't sleep. I tossed and turned all night long and then my mattress deflated in the middle of the night. The next day we had to wake up at 6:00 am. We had breakfast. They had really good hot chocolate, pancakes and fruit.
On the way to the bathrooms, a deer walked right past us. It was so close that you could almost reach out and touch it. The deer was really big and pretty. Then three more deer walked past all of us, and a little squirrel ran across my foot.
After breakfast, we were divided into groups. Then we did classes. My first one was about fasting. When we fast, we fast for those in need or maybe for something that we are going through. We have to remember that we only have to fast for several hours, but some people go a lot longer without food because they don't have any. That is what our fast offerings go to, to help those in need. We also pray while fasting. So the next time you fast, make sure you always think of those who need your help. I say a prayer almost everyday. I say it so I don't feel so nervous about school. Like one time I prayed because my dog was missing. We were driving around the block looking for him. Then when I said my prayer, my dog turned the corner. So I am very thankful Heavenly Father answered my prayer. Then at the end of the lesson we each got to pick out a pen and a little piece of paper. I got a purple pen and we put the cute paper in the middle of the pen.
Then our next class was about the temple. We learned how to do baptisms for the dead. When you are 12, you are old enough to do baptisms for the deal. When it's your 12th birthday, you can't just got and do baptisms for the dead. You have to get your temple recommend. In 1840, Joseph Smith said that those who die before hearing the LDS gospel, could have baptisms done for them. Joseph Smith's plan for the temple included the design of an unusual baptismal font in which they could perform their proxy baptisms. I thought the 12 oxen's underneath meant age 12 (because that is how old you have to be), but actually it represents the 12 tribes of Israel. 3 are looking north, 3 are looking south, 3 are looking west, 3 are looking east. We had to say what our favorite temple was and I said all of them. They also asked us if we had ever been to an open house. I have only been to one which was the Ogden Temple. But every temple throughout the world has baptisms of the dead. Then at the end, we made little necklaces. There were pictures of temples. We got to choose one. I chose the Salt Lake Temple. Then we put this clear thing over it to make it look professional.
Our last class was about not talking mean about people. It was my favorite class. We had to take a tube of toothpaste and squeeze it out onto a plastic plate. So we squeezed every single drop out onto the plate. Then they told us to try to put all the toothpaste back into the tube. We were all looking confused. We were saying it was impossible. The teacher said it was easy squeezing it out, so it should be easy to squeeze it back in. So we all tried, but we still couldn't put it in. Then she said, "I had you do this because once you say something mean either out loud or on the internet, you can never take it back." So the toothpaste was an example because we squeezed it out and we couldn't put it back in. I went through cyber bullying this summer. I would cry everyday. Someone was posting things on the internet about me saying never be friends with me and stuff like that. I have to remember who my real friends are and that they know the real me. I will always try to remember not to talk bad about anyone! Everyone in that class was crying. I wanted to cry, too. We got gummy worms at the end of that class.
Then it was time to say our good byes. At Camp Esther, I made really good friends and learned a lot about the temple and Queen Esther. I had a very fun experience. When you ever get the chance to go to Camp Esther, I hope you have a great experience like I did.
