It all started that lively Monday in late June. The summer breeze blasts my face when I open the door to head out to the garage. Pulling my camouflage suitcase behind me with my pillow and sleeping bag in my left arm, I stumble down the steps. Leaving my family for a week was hard for me and I dreaded every moment of it. The red, rusty Ford Expedition was rumbling and waiting for me to hop in. After giving them the biggest hugs ever, I say my goodbyes to my mom and sisters. I finally throw my stuff in the back and my dad drives me over to the Klavon’s house. I had no idea who this kid was or what he was like; I just noticed him at church school every once in a while. As we are driving along, I talk with my dad one last time about anything I’m missing or anything I would like to say before I leave. Once, I was gone, I would have no communication with them. We pulled into their driveway seeing Wyatt packing his bags in the back of the car. After we transferred my suitcase and all my other bags to the Klavon’s vehicle, I gave my dad one big tight squeeze of hope right before we drove off. I was scared to let go, but I knew had to.

The car ride up was as quiet as a mouse. Wyatt and I didn’t exchange any words. Mary, Wyatt’s mom, tried to start some small talk, but it died down immediately. We might’ve talked about our hobbies and our school work, but besides that, silence was present. Arriving to Legionville, we saw this shady looking barn by taking a back road. The sign on the barn said, ‘Legionville’. I was chosen to come here because I need training to become a Safety Captain Leader back at home. 

We pulled forward to our cabin, Number Five. We unpacked our stuff out of the back, and Wyatt gave his last goodbyes. He too did not want to let go of his mom, for we both didn’t want to be here. Opening the door to the cabin, our first sight was about 15 bunk beds lined up in the back along the walls. There was a cabinet and an iPod playing some pop music. Our cabin leader introduced himself and showed us around. He showed us the bathrooms, showers, and the sinks. After we got done with the tour, our cabin leader told us we could settle in, so I chose the top bunk and Wyatt chose the bottom bunk. We didn’t want to be separated from each other because we didn’t know anyone else. When we got everything situated, we were told to go outside and wait there. Walking outside of the cabin, we met a tall blonde kid sitting alone, so we talked for a little bit. He said his name was Zach, and we talked about video games. Not too long after we ended our conversation with Zach, another cabin leader came up to me and Wyatt and said that we got transferred cabins because there were too many in Number Five. Moving over to Cabin Number Six sucked because it was the furthest cabin down the line of cabins.

As we walked into Cabin Number Six, nothing was different besides the fact that there were about 6 crazy boys jumping everywhere throwing pillows and blankets at each other. We did the same routine. Meeting our leader, Ethan, was nice because he seemed more chill. One thing was different though; we had to meet our cabin teammates earlier. There were less of us in this cabin, which kind of felt nice because we weren’t as cramped as we were in the other cabin. As the conversations went on, Wyatt and I started to talk more and more. Some of us had the same interests so we got to talk about basketball and music. Even though Wyatt and I talked on the way up, I still go to learn more about him too. There was one kid who was alone on his bunk, and his name was Brandon. I left Wyatt for a quick second and I walked over to Brandon. He looked super melancholy, so I asked him why he looked so blue. He said he was super home sick, and he didn’t want to be there. I connected with him because I also felt the same way. I invited him to come back over and talk with the rest of the boys, and he followed me back. He met all the other boys, and the look on Brandon’s face was much better. I finally made a new friend.

One day passed by, and Wyatt and I started to know more about our cabin teammates. We played games, had dinner (which were really good sloppy joes), and had some training for safety. As we were walking back to our cabin about an hour before we had to go to bed, Ethan brought up an idea about scary stories. I was all for that idea, but Wyatt wanted to go to bed. Since he didn’t want to leave me by myself, he stayed awake. The first story was about ‘Cabin Number 9’ and how it was burned down with a bunch of children in it and the cabin leader of ‘Cabin Number 9’ turned into Leegy. He is the ghost and the legend of ‘Cabin Number 9’. He still haunts Legionville to this day. Then out of nowhere there was super loud banging on the back door. We all rushed back to lock the back door, but then the banging started going along the windows. Then the front door bursts open, and a ghost pops in! After scattering around in fright, Ethan and the ghost started laughing, for it was only a prank. The cabin leader from Cabin Number Seven came to pull the prank. One of our cabin teammates started crying because he was scared so bad. The leader from Cabin Number Seven felt bad, so he told us a funny story to cheer us up. The story was about how he walked into his cabin and was about to take a shower when all of a sudden there was a foot long turd on the floor. We all cracked up, and leader from Cabin Number Seven left. After that, we told just a couple more random funny stories just to get to know each other and bond some more. I enjoyed being with the other guys.  I sure felt more comfortable after that adventure.

The next two days weren’t anything special; they were mainly the same. Got fed, had free time, learned more safety in class, and played in our cabins. In the middle of of our free time on Wednesday though, something bad happened. As we were playing some casual frolf (frisbee golf), laughing and having a good time, one of our friends got a tick crawling on his neck. A friend from our cabin noticed it. As we screamed for help, a supervisor came sprinting over with a tweezers and he started to pull it out. He said it really hurt, and he started to cry a little, but we all were there for him. We all stayed there for support because the tick was burying itself super deep in his neck. When we finally pulled it out, he thanked us for staying with him and being there through the cruel times. We all walked back to our cabins with joy knowing that we are there for each other.

Friday had came up super fast. After lunch, everyone got to go canoeing. The canoes were silver with a colorful bright stripe on the side. Wyatt and I chose the canoe that had the blue stripe on it because we both liked blue. Wyatt and I were on a team and everyone else were split into teams. A random orange buoy and back was what our goal was. Wyatt and I started out cruising right along leaving everyone in the dust. As we got to the buoy, we turned around, and no one was even half way there! As we started to come back, we noticed about 3 other groups starting to drift off. They couldn’t control the canoe. Wyatt and I finally arrived back at shore, and we got to laugh at everyone else who didn’t know what they were doing. I felt like this whole week I got to know Wyatt a lot more.

Around three o'clock, the parents started to roll around. I completely forgot that my dad was picking Wyatt and me up. Everyone was walking back to their cabins, but I noticed a big red rusty Ford Expedition in front of Cabin Number Six. I connected the dots and I saw my dad getting out of the front seat. I bolted over and gave him a big hug. I had so much to tell him, but we had to pack up. Packing up was the hardest thing for me. I had to give my goodbyes to Ethan and the rest of my cabin teammates. There’s a list for best times of my life, and this week was one of them. Sadly, we grabbed our stuff from the bunks and the toiletries from the sinks, and we loaded up. I couldn’t believe that the week was already over. I met so many new friends who I would probably never see again. I realized that I had so many people in my life that were there for me and supported me. I learned that I also need to be there for others because they back me up. I didn’t want to leave Legionville at all because of all the teamwork that was shown to us. I was really going to miss my cabin and the people I met. We hopped in the car and headed home. As Wyatt and I gave my dad a recap of the week, we told him what we did, what crazy adventures we had. We told him how much fun we had, and how we wished we got to stay there for a little bit longer. We laughed and chattered the rest of the way home. Wyatt and I are really good friends to this day, and I can’t thank Legionville enough for it.