On the shores of Long Lake......

The fresh scent of pine, the lapping waves along the shore, the crying loons at night......all of the incredible memories came quickly rushing back to me as we drove down the steep hill to our beloved Camp Newfound. The crisp fall breeze filled my lungs as I took in a few deep breaths of the cleansing Maine air. Ahh....there's really no place like home. As I walked down towards the lake, I thought back to when I was 11 years old, locked arm in arm with my camp friends as we walked to the dining hall or to our sailing class. How is it possible for one little camp in the sleepy town of Harrison, ME to hold so many wonderful memories for years to come? My sister, brother and I came to camp here for many summers growing up. It was here that we learned to waterski, canoe, sail, hike, bike.....the list goes on. It was here also where I learned how to overcome obstacles, challenge myself, and be pushed out of my comfort zone.

Lucky me.....last week I got to return to camp with my 2 favorite women - Lesley (my sister) and Judy (my mom) - for the adults' creative arts program. We signed up for a writing class, not really knowing what to expect, but just glad to be in the presence of camp. We were all a little apprehensive at the idea of 4 long days of doing nothing but writing, writing, writing. Thanks to our amazing teacher Heather Vogel Frederick (a very talented published author!) and our fellow writers in the group, the class exceeded all expectations. We were given exercises that inspired and helped us to generate creative ideas for stories, poems and essays that took us to new places as writers. I left feeling uplifted and, well, greatly inspired to keep writing and journaling throughout my life. Thanks to everyone who made this a fabulous week spent at my favorite place on earth!!

The 3 of us standing by the grove:

Long Lake in the distance:

No trip to Maine would be complete without a juicy Maine lobster!!