On to Buknari, the Black Sea, and the bunk that we would call our Home for the next four days. Stephen and I were pleasantly suprised by our view from the room at the camp.
As a Summer Camp Counselor at the Georgia FFA-FCCLA Center in Covington, Georgia, U.S.A. I pretty much thought I had seen it all. I was way off. The compound had all the same amenities, but the Buknari site had one exceptional feature, a beach! Using space to our advantage, our first order was to construct a bonfire on the beach so that our Georgian campers could roast marshmallows to make s'mores. Wood was sparse, but we managed to get enough to get it going. By the bonfire we were introduced to the National Officers of the FFG(Future Farmers of Georgia), and in turn, they introduced us to everyone else. After spending some time with the campers playing ping pong and kicking the football (soccer ball), we decided to meet for the last time before we started teaching our lessons during the sessions. Up first, Dr. Jenn bringing the Values/Ethics seminar.
Teaching with a translator presented some difficulty for all of us at first. We eventually caught on to how to relate the ideas to Teona and Sesili, our two wonderful translators, and began to cruise through the lessons. I was very impressed by how most of the campers listened, took notes, and become actively involved in the lessons through asking questions and participating in games. I felt relieved that Dr. Jenn went first, but she set the bar pretty high for us. Stephen was up next giving the lesson on Vision.
After a two hour coffee break, which is not uncommon in the RofG, Stephen was up. With his lesson, was a game called Find Yourself Outside, in which students had to find things that represented them as people around them. Some of them picked chairs, some of them picked blankets, but it challenged all of them to examine their purpose and direction in life. The campers thoroughly enjoyed this activity and especially learned from it. After Stephen's lesson we packed up and were headed toward Batumi to an orphanage house that held around 50 children between the ages of 8-18. We had planned to bring our sack lunch dinners there and eat them outside. When we walked in the FFG National Officers took over, doing activities and teaching the children the some ideas behind our Values/Vision lessons we related to them earlier. They were paying attention (!) and did an excellent job teaching the kids from what the translators told us. Then our campers threw us a curveball (not always a bad thing) with what they did; they gave our sack dinners to the orphans who don't get food that is as good as sandwiches. The spirit of these children dumbfounded me! I was proud to even be associated with teenagers that have that kind of heart of giving. Without the sack dinners, we got to go into Batumi to eat, but on our way there we saw something that suprised us even more.
WE MADE THE NATIONAL NEWS, which in America is very difficult to do unless you go on a crime spree.
On Sunday, it was Heather's turn to teach and what a lesson she had planned: Communication. Her lesson involved a game of story telling, and how much something you tell someone might change the next time you hear it. The campers had a good time with the story game. Heather also taught the campers something that they were stumped on, how to write Thank You Notes. Apparently, in the RofG Thank You Notes are not required for graduation, wedding, or birthday gifts. But now they know.
After Heather's session we decided it would be best if Renee and I went on the last day, to cap the camp. This would allow the camper's plenty of time to get some of their energy out before we traveled into Batumi for the night's activities, which included a laser-water fountain show. The morning of the last day is still very vivid in my memory. While Stephen did the smarter thing by giving the Georgian people pictures he brought, all I had was stuff. In the same sense, I felt like if I didn't give something to some of my newly made friends, I would just be a distant memory of a visitor that came to entertain. I wasn't; I came with intent to better, to help build the FFG Organization. I gave one of my friends my UGA hat that has seen better days, but it has been there for me through good times and bad. I gave another one of my friends a soccer ball, which is like gold to these teenagers. The soccer ball was the first soccer ball I ever bought with my own money. Strangely enough, I don't think it will be my last.
Renee taught first. Her lesson was on setting goals and step-taking to ensure success. The game she chose involved an obstacle course. It was difficult to facilitate at times, but overall I think the campers enjoyed themselves.
I was up next. I focused on having a fun and leaving the kids with something that could remember easily. My lesson was on using your strengths to help your team. My activity was one my high school Agriculture teacher did with our class when I was in 11th grade. It's called Handicapped Paper Air Plane Factory. The name pretty much says it all. I was very skeptical of putting an activity like this on them (one with a lot of directions), but the campers really got into it. If nothing else they had fun and got a little loud with my lesson.
I was very satisfied with all the team's performance and effort at the camp at Buknari. I believe we were successful at giving them knowledge that they can use as a foundation to build the FFG Organization on. The ball is in their court. There is one story from the camp that particularly sticks out in my mind though. After Heather's lesson on Sunday, before we traveled to Batumi, Stephen runs in our room. He tells me that there is a camper playing piano in the girl's cabin and she is amazing. We round up the troops and go to see this she-beethoven. Of course, she is playing traditional Georgian music, but she has broken English and tells us thank you after we applauded her effort. She tells us the next song is American Western. Yep, the same corral music that you would probably hear in Deadwood, South Dakota in the 1930's. It was very good, and of course we clap again, but she wasn't done. American Jazz was her next selection, and once again, smooth and silky. One more song and she tells us "this is my favorite." At first, I didn't know if I was hearing it right...but I was and it was familiar...
My life is brilliant.
My life is brilliant.
My love is pure.
I saw an angel.Of that I'm sure.
She smiled me on the subway.She was with another man.
But I won't lose no sleep on that,
'Cause I've got a plan.
You're beautiful,
You're beautiful,
You're beautiful, it's true......
Who knew teenagers in the Republic of Georgia are listening to James Blunt's ballads?
After a Coke Light/Camp Planning break we hit the sack. We knew that the upcoming days at camp would define the success of our trip to the Republic of Georgia.
It was also during this time, when I realized there are a lot of feral dogs just roaming the streets of Tblisi. All-in-All I counted 12 strays, and took as many pictures of the elusive animals as I could. As a great man once said, "Please get your animals spayed and neutered."
Next, off to Georgia's oldest bakery. "So what's so historic about this bakery?" you might ask. Other than the fact that it is underground, the walls are made off cobblestone, and the bread sticks to the brick oven's wall like it's been super-glued there, there is a underground tunnel that connects the underground bakery to the adjacent cathedral. Yeah, well it might sound pretty crumby (no pun intended that it was a bakery, HaHa), but I enjoyed it.
