How Far We've Come

Chapter 24

    The walk to the actual campsite was long and tiresome. The sun beat down on us and we straggled along, sand slowly seeping into our shoes and socks, hearing waves crash onto the shoreline. On the way, some students decided it would benefit them to go into the waves and wet their shoes and socks. Luckily, I was not one of those students.

    Finally, a campsite came into view, wedged between two more campsites and bordered by two large wooden fences and a plethora of trees. All the students pitched in, helping Mr. Cardinal unload the food or working with Mr. Marvin and Mrs. Callie to set up the tents. After Brett and I helped unload all the food and set up the tables, which unfortunately kept blowing down due to the strong gusts of wind coming our way, I went to help set up our tent.

    The wind proved as an adamant obstacle as we put up the tents, constantly blowing the pegs down that held the tents in place. Finally, Mr. Marvin scavenged a bunch of paper plates, which we attached to the pegs and filled with sand to hold down.

    After setting up our tents and hearing our tent groups, we all took our sleeping bags and claimed our spots. I claimed the spot at the very back of the tent, which I would later learn was the best option. Laying out my sleeping bag and arranging my duffel bag and backpack at the end of it, I finished organizing my section of the tent. Careful not to step on anyone else's bags, I tiptoed out, but a few items caught my eye. In my tent, I knew two girls extremely well- Clary and a girl from my Spanish class named Madeline. She was pretty nice, but when I thought of her, I immediately thought of the gymnastics classes that she took. It was just most people's connotation of her.

    When I went back out, all the tables were set, ready for the barbecue. Despite the fact that it was meat, my stomach grumbled at the thought of all that amazing food. Soon, everyone had finished setting up their tents and had gathered around the tables.

    There were two plastic tables, ready for a buffet set up and three grills behind that. Plates were laid out on the buffet table, full of four different kinds of cheeses. Bags were filled with hamburger buns and hot dog buns. There were bottles of ketchup, mustard, and mayonnaise. By the grills, there were countless bags of patties made from who-knew-what kind of meat.

    There were things other than sandwiches, too. I saw some coleslaw salad and a clear, plastic bowl full of fruits. A plastic cup was filled with metal cutlery.

    My stomach grumbling, I was about to pick up some food when I realized one crucial thing was missing- plates. How could we eat without plates? Sensing my confusion, a girl next to me informed, "Remember we brought our own plates?"

    I smacked my forehead. Of course! Giving her a sheepish smile, I raced back to my tent and hopped to my sleeping bag at the end of the tent. I quickly unzipped my gray backpack and pulled out the blue plastic plate protected with a large Ziploc bag.

    Behind it, I spotted something else in a plastic bag. Under further inspection, I discovered it was food. Of course my mom had packed me some backup food. Feeling like it would eventually come in handy, I stuffed it back in the bag and hopped my way out of the tent.

    Only now was it evident why I had chosen the best spot. The rest of the bags were already covered with sand, Clary's bag at the front of the tent being the most sandy. Mine was virtually spotless. Shaking my head with a small smile on my face, I zipped up the tent and walked back to the tables, the sand below me finding its way into my sneakers.

    It was already beginning to annoy me that we weren't allowed to wear open toed shoes... ever. And we had to wear shoes outside the tents, no matter where it was. The sand that had formed a small dune, arching under my sock-covered feet was more than a bit annoying. But, I forced myself to ignore it and get my food.