Our sponsors, Katie and Ben Evenbeck and their adorable 9-month old daughter Lucie, have been simply delightful. They are the perfect hosts for our team. Coming from a camp background, they are very well-attuned to team dynamics and morale and have been so patient an gracious in the way they interact with us. They are also very attentive and responsive to our physical needs, rushing to provide us with whatever shortcomings we may identify. On our second day here, they found out we didn't have a television and brought one up to the house along with a DVD/VHS player. Ben has given us access to his library of really great reading, and we have an account at the hardware store in case we run short of supplies during our work day.
Food is definitely not an issue. On the first night we arrived, we were treated to an amazing dinner of lasagna, ravioli, salad, bread, and for dessert, chocolate cake and the best apple pie I've ever had, no exaggeration. On Sundays after the weekend's retreat guests have left the camp, we have unlimited access to the leftovers in the refrigerator, and what tasty food it is! As a result, instead of turkey and ham sandwiches, I've lunched on chicken mirabella, beef chili, spinach ravioli, vegetables teriyaki, and apple cake with homemade whipped cream. It's been quite the luxury.
When we arrived on the first day, we were greeted in the rustically elegant Main House with coffee, tea, and fancy trappings for lunch sandwiches. The first couple of days of our project were simply orientation, starting with the Main House, and got a rundown of the history of St. Dorothy's, the oldest continually operating summer camp in California. Ben took us for a quick stroll around the property to look at the various cabins and get us situated in our new home (more on that in a future post).
The next day, we began our orientation in the morning with a nice, long discussion on hope, faith, love, and luck, the four key values on which St. Dorothy's operates. We also did a corny little activity where we each drew out our own personal newspaper and what the headlines would look like by the end of our project. It was a little cheesy, but I know a lot of my team members appreciated the exercise and opportunity for reflection. We also had an intensive planning session in which we hammered out our weekly routine, like the whos and whens of cooking, cleaning, and laundry. I was very proud of the way our team pulled together and got organized. It boded well for the rest of the project.
In the afternoon of the second day, Ben brought us on a hike deep into the redwood forests behind St. Dorothy's. The camp is hoping to acquire more land soon, and it was exciting to hear Ben's ideas on how to expand the camp programs with a ropes course, outdoor kitchen, water sports, and other activities. The woods were absolutely gorgeous. It was truly postcard-perfect with hidden waterfalls and a burbling creek tucked between the towering redwoods. It was like Ferngully.
Once we thought it couldn't get any better, Ben took us on a tour of the community the following day. We started the morning at Howard Station Cafe, which is hands down the most delicious breakfast I've had in memory. I had eggs benedict, perfectly cooked, and the best potatoes I've ever had in my life (again, no exaggeration intended).
We then headed down to the Sonoma Coast by way of Highway 1, a winding ribbon of concrete and twists and turns through vineyards and hills until it reaches the Pacific Ocean. We drove through the town of Bodega Bay, where Alfred Hitchcock's The Birds was filmed. By way of film references, the closing scenes of the The Goonies was also shot in Bodega Bay.
We ended up at Goat Rock Beach at the mouth of the Russian River as it feeds into the Pacific Ocean. The coast here is no white-sand paradise; it is cold, craggy, and treacherous but also breathtakingly beautiful. It is an intimidating and intriguing vista that forces viewers to reflect on the power of the boundless oceans. Waves crash on land with astounding force, throwing up massive white fans of ocean spray against the salt-blown bluffs and leaving a carpet of fluffy sea foam on the sand in their wake. Giant rocky monoliths rise from the rolling waters, enduing centuries of pummeling with staid perseverance. We spent way too much time wandering the glossy sands and basking in the therapeutic sights, sounds, and salty smells of the ocean.
We looped along the Russian River through Monte Rio and up to Guerneville, where we visited the Armstrong Redwoods State Natural Reserve. Ben brought us here so we could see what we would be working toward. The park features redwoods literally thousands of years old. One display showed a cross section of a fallen redwood that germinated in 948 A.D. and marked off important historical events, starting from the landing of the Vikings in North America all the way to the 1906 San Francisco earthquake. You couldn't help but feel reverent as you walked through this living canopy so steadfastly flourishing over the centuries. The place had a serene yet majestic beauty, unassuming yet awesome.
With an orientation this good, I only hope the rest of the project lives up to the hype. It's undoubtedly gorgeous, and I wake up every morning feeling so incredibly blessed to not only live, but also make a difference in such a beautiful environment. I'll have to keep reminding myself of this truth even in hard times ahead. But now if you'll excuse me, it's sunny outside, and I think I'll find a nice shady spot to curl up with a good book and some tea.
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