There I am, stuck in the middle of a room filled with strangers. I scann the room looking for familiar faces, but mostly for good looking fellows. This is the life changing experience I’ve been waiting for, I think to myself. This is Freedom Academy. Kids throughout the entire state gather together for a week ran by the National Guard at a real army camp. My shaking leg bounces up and down from not only the excitement, but the nervous feelings in my stomach. I made sure to come extra early to guarantee I did not become one of the last kids filtering in at the final seconds. My fellow classmate Jake and I sat near the front of the room, watching the kids fill up the seats. I made eye contact with a guy I met at the front doors only
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I watch as counselors stand up and begine to call out names. They stood proudly adorned with intimidating army uniforms and stern faces to match. Slowly the room begins to empyt. My classmate gets called into his group and I now sit alone. I begin to worry if I my registration was processed. What if my paperwork got lost? What if they didn’t reserve a spot for me? What if I got sent home? I look around as the last counselor stands up. She seems kind with a warm smile to match. The relief finally washes over me as I hear my name as well as the final eight kids left in the room. After a small trek through the camp, we arrive at our sleeping barracks. We sit in a circle and begin to learn about each other. Next to me sits a boy with long curly hair and unusually short shorts. A small girl with glasses begins her chatting confidently. Another girl sits quietly, listening intently. A boy with fire like hair, named Ossian, turns to the curly haired boy and begins to tease him. I felt a bond with this new group of kids after only a few short minutes. We walked to the barracks as a group with our nerves still high from having big and broad Drill Sergeants yelling in our faces. This strenuous day causes us to slam into our beds from exhaustion. I felt my own personally exhaustion from the extreme kick out of the comfort zone as I made a special effort to get to
I watch as counselors stand up and begine to call out names. They stood proudly adorned with intimidating army uniforms and stern faces to match. Slowly the room begins to empyt. My classmate gets called into his group and I now sit alone. I begin to worry if I my registration was processed. What if my paperwork got lost? What if they didn’t reserve a spot for me? What if I got sent home? I look around as the last counselor stands up. She seems kind with a warm smile to match. The relief finally washes over me as I hear my name as well as the final eight kids left in the room. After a small trek through the camp, we arrive at our sleeping barracks. We sit in a circle and begin to learn about each other. Next to me sits a boy with long curly hair and unusually short shorts. A small girl with glasses begins her chatting confidently. Another girl sits quietly, listening intently. A boy with fire like hair, named Ossian, turns to the curly haired boy and begins to tease him. I felt a bond with this new group of kids after only a few short minutes. We walked to the barracks as a group with our nerves still high from having big and broad Drill Sergeants yelling in our faces. This strenuous day causes us to slam into our beds from exhaustion. I felt my own personally exhaustion from the extreme kick out of the comfort zone as I made a special effort to get to