Mail

Today, something exciting happened to me. I got mail! More specifically, I got a package. Mail is good, packages are better, but books are best. This book is a kid's book, but that doesn't make it any less fun to read. The book comes from letters James Joyce wrote to his grandson, and it begins "Alas! I cannot send you a Copenhagen cat because there are no cats in Copenhagen." The story is a short, fun read, by a masterful author. It ends with an appropriate question for any written work: "What do you think of this?"

A New Home for Monty

I recently moved into a dorm at the boarding school I now attend. Of course, the loyal Monty accompanied me. My dorm is surprisingly roomy. The desk and the closet both have a lot of shelf and storage space. My roommate and I decided to bunk the beds, which also creates a ton of extra room. So far, residential school has been a very different experience.

Being away from home has been hard- I have to be responsible for everything, because my parents aren't there to do it for me, or to make me do it. Of course, my parents still stay involved in my life; but they definitely aren't there to cook meals or do laundry for me. Sometimes it's hard to find time to call then until it's so late that they aren't up anymore. I do my best to keep in touch.

At first, there was always an activity scheduled, and no down time at all. This caused everyone to be exhausted. However, as we are allowed more and more to do what we want, it has become much easier.

Classes began a few days ago, and they are all pretty enjoyable. Several teachers give out syllabi with assignments weeks in advance. It's a pretty decent workload so far, but not unmanageable. Of course, I haven't had the first test yet. I still am making changes to my schedule, but I hope to get it settled soon.

I'm looking forward to when extracurricular activities begin, but I'll find out more about that later.

Day 14

We will arrive at home sometime this afternoon. I'm looking forward to my bed, my shower, my family, my cat, and my space. There's so much to tell everyone.
I have enjoyed Philmont so much, even through all the times that tested us. There are times when I should have calmed down more and just let things be; I suppose that's my lesson to learn.
I hate leaving. I know I'm going to showers, beds, no worries about smellables, and not having to care if it's raining or not, but I'd be glad to do it again right now. I'd be even happier to do it again after a few weeks to rest and recuperate. I'm so glad I went to Philmont - it was definitely worth the 18+ months of preparation. I'm thankful for the crew I went with - some of the struggles and frustration would not have been bearable if we couldn't trust each other and laugh together.
I don't want to lose all the memories, skills, and friendships I made at Philmont.
IWGBTP!

Day 13

Our last morning at Philmont, we made it to breakfast at the dining hall. After breakfast we loaded our stuff in the van and checked out of the tents. Then we were gone. One crew member wanted to throw his boots, which were pretty worn out, over the Philmont Scout Ranch sign. I got a good video of him throwing them up there.
We all got our patches before we left - our Wilderness Pledge Award, our Duty to God Award, and our Arrowhead. Since it's the 75th Anniversary, they all have a little 75 somewhere on them in ghost thread.
So we left Philmont today. I've slept most of the ride; I guess I'm just really tired from all the late nights and early mornings. We plan to spend the night in a hotel, which will be nice. Hooray for real beds!