​Day 1: We Gathered Here

“Sometimes, reaching out and taking someone’s hand is the beginning of a journey.” — Vera Nazarian

Tonight, I am sitting here at Bryce Canyon thinking about hugs. The first-day kind. The I-have-missed-you kind. The I-only-know-you-from-Facebook-but-I-feel-like-I-know-you kind. The slightly nervous new-camper kind that turns into a real hug before the night is over.

Today, ten brand-new campers from all over the country joined our STEAM in the PARK family. Ten new stories. Ten new classrooms and communities represented. Ten people who said yes to coming all the way to Utah to spend a week learning outside with us. Mixed in with them were so many familiar faces. Campers who have traveled with us before. Friends who have become family somewhere along the way. There were a LOT of hugs today.

And then there was Ruby’s Inn. Y'all. I think some of our campers were prepared to rough it a little more than they are actually going to have to this week. The faces when they saw their rooms made me laugh. Beautiful accommodations. Comfortable beds. Air conditioning. Bathrooms. All the things that feel especially glorious after some of our STEAM in the PARK adventures.

It did not take long for our people to start exploring. Across the street, many of them discovered what may be one of the most delicious ice-cream shops we have found anywhere on the road. I am not exaggerating when I tell you that people were already talking about going back tomorrow before they had finished what was in their cups today.

And then they found the Rock Shop. The husband-and-wife owners have created the kind of place where you can lose track of time looking at rocks, minerals, and treasures. But what got me was learning that they give teachers a free bag of rocks. Of course they do. Because somehow, everywhere we go, we find good humans who understand teachers. People who know that a bag of rocks is never just a bag of rocks when you hand it to an educator. It becomes a science lesson. A writing prompt. A mystery. A classroom collection. A reason for a child to lean closer and ask a question.

Tonight, we started learning a little more about one another with one of my favorite activities, Comfort Zone, Growth Zone, and Yikes Zone. We laughed, we learned things, and I watched people begin to figure out where they fit in this new little community we are building for the week. Some things feel easy. Some things stretch us. And some things make every part of us scream, “ABSOLUTELY NOT.”

The beautiful part is that none of our zones look exactly the same. What is comfortable for one person may be someone else's yikes. What terrifies one camper may be exactly where another camper feels most alive. There is something important about naming those things out loud. It reminds us to make room for one another. It reminds us that growth does not have to look the same for everybody.

Then came our Book Buddies. Books were exchanged, new buddies were discovered, and stories began moving from one set of hands to another. I love this part of camp because books have always felt a little like introductions to me. When you hand someone a book, you are saying, “Here is something I carried. Now you carry it for a while.”

We also spent time beginning to learn about the Paiute people and their connection to this land. That matters here. We cannot simply stand in awe of Bryce Canyon's beauty without also making room to learn about the people whose relationships with this place reach far beyond the boundaries and timelines of a national park. We are only beginning that learning this week.

And then we gathered around the fire. Well, the propane fire. Utah is currently under a burn ban, so our traditional campfire was not going to happen. But our sweet host here at Ruby's Inn heard what we were trying to do and let us borrow his propane fire pit. Because gathering matters. The flames may have looked a little different tonight, but the circle felt exactly the way it was supposed to feel.

We sat together beneath this huge Utah sky. New campers. Returning campers. Book buddies. Teachers from all over the country who, just hours earlier, were arriving with luggage and name tags and that tiny bit of first-day uncertainty. Tonight, they sat in a circle together.

Day One is always my favorite kind of magic. Not because everyone knows each other yet, but because they don't. And somehow, before we go to bed, the space between strangers has already started getting smaller.

Tonight, at Bryce Canyon, we gathered here. And tomorrow, the hoodoos are waiting.