Brian put the car in park, shut off the engine, and opened the door to get out as the sound of the ding-ding-ding warning chime signaled that the keys were still in the ignition. He had just backed the car into our campsite and we were about to unload and set-up camp for the weekend. I opened the front passenger door, slipped out, and then opened the door behind me where Callie was sitting, strapped securely in her car seat.

“Hi, little sweetie! We’re here! Yes, we’re here! Are you a happy camper?” I said to her in a high, excited voice.

She smiled and kicked and waved her arms responding to my excitement as she usually does. I un-strapped her and lifted her out of the car seat and carried her to the back of the car. She had just turned one year old the previous weekend.

The idea for this camping trip had come up late on the previous Wednesday afternoon. Julie, my best friend had called me and said, “Hey, we’re going camping this weekend.”

“Cool,” I responded. “Hope you guys have fun.”

“No, I mean we – us – you guys, too.”

“Well, we were thinking of doing something else this weekend,” I responded hesitantly, wondering if I’d missed out on somebody’s planning or forgotten something I was supposed to have remembered.

But she responded with, “I know. So were we. But now there’s a new plan. It’s like this: we all take off at noon Friday and have a full weekend over there. It’s probably our last chance before winter. Brilliant! No?”

“Well, I’ll run it by Brian and see what he thinks.”

“OK. Just tell him it’s all my idea and I’ve thought of everything.”

“Uhhh yeah. That’ll really sell him,” I said with some humorous sarcastic inflections in my voice.

Later on when Brian called I mentioned Julie’s idea of going camping.

He said, “Yeah, it crossed my mind too. The weather’s supposed to be unseasonably warm the whole weekend with no rain. But I know we were planning on going to that other thing. I know how much you like that.”

I replied, “Well, that’s become sort of a tradition with us…I guess…but then so is camping. And we haven’t done near as much of that this summer as we would’ve liked.”

“I’m down either way, babe,” he said, but I sensed that he was leaning toward camping. And honestly, I was too.

I replied, “Yeah, I am, too, but maybe we should be on the opportunistic side of this. It probably really is our last chance to go camping this year. And Julie and Jeff will be there, too, and that doesn’t happen very often anymore.”

“Sounds like we’ve reached a decision then,” Brian responded.”

“Yeah, I think we have. We’re good, aren’t we?”

“That’s nothing compared to some of the other things we’re good at,” he said, the innuendo inflected in his voice. I love it when he flirts with me like that.

“Mmmm-hmmm,” I said acknowledging that I totally understood and agreed. Then switching back, “So what do you think about camping for two nights? We haven’t tried that with Callie yet.”

“I don’t know. Seems like we’ve got to start sometime. Might as well be now. If it doesn’t work out, we can always just come on home, you know.”

“Yeah, I know. OK then…I’ll start planning and getting things together. I’ll let Julie know.”

“OK. I’ll schedule myself off for Friday afternoon. Hey you better let Beth know, too. She’s probably thinking we’re still doing the other thing.”

That was a good point. The last couple of years we had all gone to this festival in our town together. So later in the afternoon when I knew she was free, I gave her a call and let her know what we were thinking.

After telling her about our change of plans, she said, “Oh. OK. I guess I can still go on my own.”

“I’m sorry,” I said. I could detect the disappointment in her voice even though she didn’t intend for me to.

It was just then that I thought about asking her if she wanted to come with us, but before I could say anything, she said, “I’m actually off Friday afternoon because of conferences this week.”

“Oh. Well, do you want to come with us? You’re welcome to.”

“Would I be, like, barging in on a couples thing?” she asked.

“No, no, not at all. And Julie and Jeff won’t care. You know how she is – the more the merrier as far as she’s concerned.”

“OK then. If you’re sure you guys don’t mind, I’d like to go along.”

So that’s how this late-breaking, last-minute, last-chance camping trip all came about.

* * *

Brian had opened the tailgate and unloaded Callie’s playpen and was setting that up. She was very mobile by then and always on the move. We were calling her little Miss Mobility. She wasn’t walking yet, but she could crawl really fast. We knew we’d need the playpen out and ready first thing to keep her contained while we unloaded everything else and set up camp. We couldn’t take our eyes off her for a minute otherwise. But first, I checked her and she needed changing, so I set about doing that. And as I did, I thought about what a beautiful Indian summer day this was. It was so warm – low 80’s – with a nice breeze. And the sky! - it just seems more blue in the fall. The trees were changing – we had seen some really pretty ones on the drive over here.

It was about 3:00 p.m. – still the warmest part of the day. Beth had come over to our place early and helped me get things organized and down to the car so that by the time Brian got home, all we had to do was load up and go. We made very good time.

Pulling in to the campground is like meeting up with an old friend. It feels like a second home. We had stopped to check-in, visited with the manager a moment, and before heading up the hill to the camping area, we followed our usual tradition of getting undressed at the car. We thought this was an especially good idea today, since we knew that in the evening it might get chilly and we would probably have to put something on then.

As we undressed, it was fun to note how far Beth had come in adapting to the whole idea of social nudity. She had come from not undressing at all with us the first time we brought her until later in the visit; then to a sort of cautious reluctance starting out on the second time. Now she was undressing out here in the open with Brian and me just like she was quite at home without a concern in the world about it. It was like, let’s get these clothes off and put away because they won’t be needed for awhile. And she had a demeanor about it that showed confidence and conviction that this was a good thing.

As we were unloading, organizing the campsite and putting up the tents, my phone rang. It was Julie. We were driving separately.

“Hey,” I said.

“You guys already there?” she asked.

“Yep,” I replied.

“Wish we were. We just left.”

“Well, hurry up and get here. You’re wasting a beautiful afternoon.”

“Oh, I know. I think I’ll go ahead and get naked right now in the car.”

“Are you sure that’s a good idea?”

“Probably not – I’m driving.” We both laughed.

I said, “That would be interesting – especially at the toll booth.”

“Oh, I’m sure they’ve seen it all.”

“Probably not that.”

“Oh, I don’t know – I bet they could tell some stories. Anyway, is Beth there?”

“Yeah. Why?”

“Tell her I want to talk to her about something when we get there. OK?”

“OK. What about?”

“Just tell her. Bye.”

To Brian and Beth, I said, “Julie and Jeff are just now starting out.”

Brian said, “That’ll put them here about 5:00 then. They’re missing a great afternoon.”

“I know. That’s what I told them,” I replied. Then to Beth, “Hey, Julie told me to tell you that she wants to talk to you about something when they get here.”

“Me?” she asked. “What about?”

“Didn’t say.”

“What do you think it is?”

“No way to know for sure, but knowing Julie, she probably wants to fix you up with some guy they know.”

“Doesn’t she know I’m seeing someone?”

“She does, but…”

“But what?” Beth interrupted, stopping what she was doing.

Sheepishly, I answered, “I guess I mentioned that you two were sort of, like, on again off again. Sorry.”

“It’s OK. No big deal.”

Then cautiously, I asked, “So…like…which is it now? On…or off?”

“Who knows,” she answered a bit dejectedly. Then added with a sigh, “I don’t want to talk about it. OK?”

I knew not to press it. Brian and I both had our doubts about the guy she was going out with, but knew that we needed to stay out of it. She’s a big girl; it’s her life and her relationship. She doesn’t need us meddling in it.

The conversation then switched back to the tasks at hand. With three of us working, we made steady progress in getting our camp site set up and organized. And it was fun stopping to visit with some of the other camping neighbors around us. Most of them we knew from previous times here. The camping area seemed more like a community of neighbors rather than just a random collection of campers. Of course, Callie was instantly the center of attention and focus of conversation in our camp, and she was just fine with that. She’s never met a stranger. She was pulled up, holding on to the sides of her playpen and taking in all that was going on.

More campers were arriving as the afternoon progressed and as we finished our work, our set up efforts gradually transitioned into just visiting with others as they arrived and were setting up all around us. We had intended to hike the trail while the sun was still high, but we didn’t even get to the end of the row of campsites because of all the visiting we wound up doing. Then Julie and Jeff arrived. We saw them pull up at our campsite, get out, and start getting undressed and unloading for the weekend. We walked back to join them.

You’d have thought we hadn’t seen each other for ages, the way we were so excited to see each other. Julie, always a little loud anyway, was all the more vocal in her excitement about being here. She and I have always hugged in friendship anytime we get together and today was no different. Then she hugged Brian, then Beth. And Brian and Jeff did their usual fist bump boy greeting ritual.

Then came the Callie and Julie reunion – they seem to have developed their own thing, too. Julie is the first person outside of mommy and daddy that Callie remembered and recognized, so she and Julie have a special little routine going on, too. Callie just loves her and gets so excited whenever Julie is around. Right then Julie took her from us and held her and talked to her and played with her. Julie had never been around kids very much before and had never done much baby sitting or anything like that, but she has really taken to Callie right from day one and eagerly held her and talked to her and cared for her, even the dirty diaper work occasionally. So it is always fun to see how well she and Callie have hit it off. Whenever asked about having kids of their own, Julie always says that she’s still used to being the baby, not the mommy, but I can see how she and Jeff could eventually have kids and be great parents.

But anyway, getting together at the campground is always a reunion of sorts for all of us. Even though we see each other often at home – both individually and as couples – being here is a chance to hang out at a place that’s set apart and different in so many good ways. It tends to draw us all closer. We all recognize that and look forward to it.

Another thing, Julie being a very exuberant person tends to bring out the exuberance of many of those around her, so even among the other campers there was a lot of happy and boisterous greetings. It’s all good fun with lots of laughter – some of it a bit loud, but that’s OK.

We spent the next little while getting them all set up and blended in with us for the weekend. Our area looked like a little tent city with their tent, our new, bigger tent that we got at the beginning of the season so that we’d have plenty of room for Callie and her stuff, and our old tent that Beth would be staying in. All the food and meal preparation was going to be combined.

Speaking of which, by now it was time to start thinking about dinner, so that’s what we did next. Mealtime is not anything that you can forget about here. In a campground around mealtime there are always so many good smells floating around from all the outdoor cooking that’s going on and some of them are really, really good smells! We pooled our resources and our efforts and prepared ourselves a really good dinner. The guys did the grill work and us gals did the rest. Our first meal of the weekend was a nice little feast and a fitting celebration of being here.

As the sun went down, so did the temperature. I got Callie into something warm and not long after, I put something on myself. One-by-one so did the rest of us. It’s not that it turned real cold – it’s just that it was too cool to be comfortable just sitting around. Most of the folks around us seemed to feel the same way as most of them put something on as well although there were a few die-hards that were way tougher than me.

We spent the evening talking and goofing around together just like we would if we were back home. There was lots of laughter. Beth joined right in with us; I was glad to see that. And as always, there were others stopping by to say hi and visit awhile.

Later on as Callie’s bedtime rolled around, I got her ready to go down for the night, then got myself ready. I just decided to go to bed at the same time. I knew that would help her to settle down and go to sleep in an unfamiliar place and would reduce the chances of waking her up when we came to bed later. By the time she and I were ready to slip into the tent, the others in our group had moved off to visit some other people down the line of campers a little ways. I was feeling a little left out as I first got Callie situated and then myself. But as I sang to her and stroked her head and sensed her settling down, I knew that it was a privileged responsibility to look after her needs first and foremost and that, in turn made me feel content and happy.

Just then I heard someone outside the tent. “Hey in there.” It was Brian speaking softly. I could hear him undressing. Then he opened the zipper of the tent – slowly in an attempt to keep it quiet - and crawled inside and into our combined sleeping bag.

“How are my girls?” he asked softly, sliding in next to me.

“We’re fine,” I answered, also softly. Callie heard him and roused from nearly being asleep. She called out and stirred excitedly. She loves her daddy and is always happy to see him or even just hear his voice.

Brian said softly, “Hi Callie-girl!” He leaned across me and kissed her forehead. Then said to me, “Guess she’s not asleep yet?”

“Not any more,” I responded.

“Oh. Sorry,” he said.

“No, it’s OK,” I said. “Glad you’re here with us.” Then to her, I said soothingly, “Yeah, it’s OK. It’s OK, sweetie. Time for sleep. Time for sleep.” Then in the same voice I said to Brian, “Babe, you didn’t have to come to bed yet.”

He responded, “I know, but I’d rather be with you. And this is where you are, so here I am.”

“That’s sweet,” I said snuggling back against him.

“Besides,” he added, putting his arm around me, “I didn’t want to chance waking her or you up later when I came in.”

“Glad you’re here,” I said, repeating myself, feeling so safe and secure. Then I resumed singing softly to help Callie settle down. Not sure who fell asleep first – her or Brian.

* * *

In the morning we were up fairly early thanks to Callie. She’s a good sleeper, but when morning rolls around and her little eyes pop open, that’s it – sleep is over and it’s time to get up and get goin’. So we got up and out. I changed her and fed her. By that time Beth was up and around and offered to watch Callie so that Brian and I could go for a run together. We took her up on it. She loves her “auntie” - that’s how we all refer to her around Callie.

We got our shoes on, stretched a little, and then took off. We headed down the row of campers, saying good morning (not too loudly) to those that were out and about, past the restrooms, past the pool, and on down the trail into the woods. It was still a little cool – low sixties, I’d guess – but being active made it feel good to be out there. And running with Brian was a treat – we don’t get to run together very often any more.

We weren’t trying to run fast or knock ourselves out, just a smooth, easy pace. It was fun seeing all the trees with some of their leaves changing and others not yet, depending on the kind of tree. Brian and I talked as we ran. We scared a few birds and also some squirrels as we ran along.

It doesn’t take very long to run from one end of the campground property to the other, but there is a network of several trails that traverse the whole place. Some loop off of a main trail and others just go out and right back. We took them all. We knew we were the trailblazers of the day, because we ran into invisible spider webs now and then. That always freaks me out – I’m afraid the spider will still be attached and crawl on me even though that’s never happened. Besides, it’s a good excuse to get Brian to go ahead of me and clear them out. Ha! I guess he’d rather do that than put up with me screaming or stopping to frantically get the spider web off of me.

We had a good run and a great time together. We worked up a sweat so we stopped by the showers on the way back and showered off, then walked on back to camp carrying our shoes and dripping dry.

By then it was time for some serious breakfast. I had snacked on half a bagel before we left, but now we were both ravenous. Brian fired up the camp stove to make coffee and I started getting out cereal, bagels, and fruit. With all that commotion, it wasn’t long before Julie and Jeff finally rolled out. What a couple of sleepy slackers. Soon we were all sitting around our picnic table enjoying breakfast and casual conversation. No agenda, no to-do lists, no pressures. Just being outdoors, out in the open, and being open to friends and family and passers-by. How great is that! Why do we not do this more often?!

* * *

Later, us three gals went for a long walk out across the campground property. Callie was with Brian and Jeff as they and some other folks were listening/watching a football game. As we started out Beth asked, “Are you sure you don’t mind me coming along? Maybe you guys just want some time.”

“No, not at all,” I said. “Us gals gotta stick together.”

“That’s right,” Julie confirmed. “Besides, I need to talk to you about something.”

“Oh yeah, that’s what Sunny said,” Beth replied.

“So OK. Here’s the deal,” Julie started off. “Jeff and I know this really cool guy. It’s somebody he works with. He’s single and he’s about your age – maybe a year or two older – I don’t know, but he’s really cute. I can’t wait to introduce you.”

“But Julie,” Beth replied. “I’m already seeing someone.”

“Oh,” Julie said. “OK. So…how’s that going?”

“Fine.”

“Really?”

“OK, maybe not so much sometimes.”

It’s usually easier when someone else who is not quite so close to the person asks these kind of probing questions and draws out what is really going on with them. Julie is good at this kind of thing and I think this was exactly what Beth needed at this point in time. I just kept quiet and let Julie do what she does.

“Not so much sometimes,” Julie repeated, acknowledging Beth’s statement. Then asked, “So how about now?”

“I don’t know,” Beth answered dejectedly.

“Oh. OK. I see. So what’s the problem?”

“I don’t know,” Beth responded again, frustration in her voice this time. “It’s just that…it’s like…I never know where we stand.”

“Why is that?”

“I don’t know. I just can’t tell from day to day.”

“Have you asked him?”

“Yeah! I mean, I’ve tried. I do try. I have tried. But…I don’t know…he can’t tell me…I guess.”

“Can’t? (pause) Or won’t.”

“I don’t know. Can’t…maybe. Or maybe won’t. I don’t know.”

“Girl, you don’t seem to know too much with this guy.”

“I know. And I don’t know what to do for sure,” Beth responded in frustration.

“I’d say you need to make sure he knows how you feel. And then insist that he tell you how he feels about your relationship.”

“Yeah. He seems to have a hard time with that kind of thing. I guess…maybe…it’s not so easy for me either.”

“Girl, you’ve got to express yourself. You know? Just…like…put it out there. It doesn’t do any good keeping it stuffed down inside. It’s kinda like going naked. You just put yourself out there,” she said. “Everything out there in the open. It is what it is.” Then throwing her head back and arms wide, she exclaimed, “Express yourself! Express yourself!!” Then to us: “C’mon you do it, too. Express yourself. Say it! Do it! You too, Sunny! Express yourself!”

She had us all three doing this and we were all three laughing about it together and glad that no one was around to see us making fools of ourselves. Quite a mood change came over us in all this goofing around. It was pure and simple fun – the kind of thing that gets you outside yourself.

Then Julie interrupted and in a more subdued tone and with a mischievous twinkle in her eye said, “But [pause] if it doesn’t work out…I know this hot guy. And guess what. He wants to meet you.”

“How do you know that?” Beth asked.

Julie answered, even more mischievously, “’Cause I told him all aboutcha …and he wants ta MEETcha!”

Laughing, Beth asked, “What did you tell him?”

“I told him I know this hot nudist chick and I wanna get you two naked together.”

“No you didn’t!” Beth replied, knowing that Julie was just goofing around again.

“I know,” Julie said, laughing at her own joke.

“You have a strange sense of humor sometimes,” Beth responded.

I interjected, “So that’s what that’s supposed to be.”

“Shut up,” Julie shot back at me in a joking way.

And with that, we moved on to other subjects – many, many other subjects. It was a great time for girl-talk, hiking from one end of the campground to the other until we returned to our campsite.

Please note that at any point in time that we were at our campsite, there were always other people stopping by. Sometimes just to exchange a quick greeting – other times to stay and talk for awhile; sometimes a long while. You get a great sense of community in a setting like this where everyone is open and relaxed and interested in one another - open to share or listen or both. And in turn, if we were out walking, we were the same way- stopping to talk when we met other people or passed by their campsite. Our own neighborhood at home is a lot like that, at least, in the summer when people are often outdoors for a walk – especially in the evening. But this place is like that every time. I love that about it.

* * *

Another time, us two couples decided to go for a walk. Beth had volunteered to stay with Callie who was down for her afternoon nap. As we left our campsite, Beth was stretched out on a blanket in the shade beside Callie, listening to her iPod with her eyes closed, although I knew she was awake and alert for Callie. She enjoyed visiting with the folks at the campground, too, but she also took her share of walks alone – especially during this trip. I knew she was doing some serious thinking, probably about her relationship. And I also knew that she knew she could talk to Brian or me about it anytime if she felt the need.

As the four of us set off down the trail and into the woods, we talked about whatever popped into anybody’s head. It’s safe to say that all of us are close enough as friends that we feel totally comfortable together. Everyone can trust everyone else with anything and everything; and we do. I don’t know what I’d do without close friendships like this. I feel sorry for those who don’t have them.

As we talked about how great it was to be here this weekend and as Julie reminded us that it was all her idea to come (which was true) and that she planned everything (which was not true), we lamented about how none of us had made it over here nearly as much as we would have liked this year and about all of the supposed reasons for that.

Jeff remarked, “I guess we’re just contributing our membership dues without getting much use out of it. It’s our own fault though.”

I said, “Yeah, it’s costly to belong and costly to pay for the gas to get over here, too.”

“Oh, it’s worth it, though,” Julie said.

I replied, “Well, we’re having a great time this weekend. This is so perfect, perfect, perfect.”

“And things are going great with Callie, aren’t they?” Julie asked.

I said, “Yeah, she’s great. She’s a good little traveler. She seems to be at home no matter where we are – here, over at Brian’s parents, anywhere really.”

“I can’t wait ‘til she can run around here and play and splash in the pool. She’s gonna be so cute,” Julie said.

“Yeah, but who is she gonna play with?” I asked. “There are no other kids here – none at all.”

Brian said, “Have you guys noticed we’re the youngest ones here?”

“Dude, that’s nothing new,” Jeff answered.

“No, I don’t mean just us adults. I mean everybody. You guys and us and Beth and Callie – we’re by far the six youngest people here.”

“There just aren’t any families,” I said. “That’s the sad part.”

Julie responded back, “There used to be. Maybe there will be again. Maybe next year.”

“Well, I certainly hope there will be,” I replied. “But Brian and I have been talking it over and we hate to see it come to the point that someday Callie wouldn’t want to come here because it would be boring; because there are no other kids around.”

“There ya go thinkin’ way ahead again, Sunny,” Julie said, half-joking, half-serious.

I knew I needed to explain. “Yeah, I know, but we just think it’s important that a lot of what we do as a family ought to be done with other families. We want our child to grow up seeing that families doing things together is a normal and fun way to do things. Know what I mean? We want our family to be a happy, loving, secure, interacting unit and we want our child to see that as a good and normal way of life. And we just think it’s important for our child to observe other families doing that, too – not just our own.”

“OK, I can understand that,” Julie replied, sensing my seriousness about this.

I went on. “I mean, being here where we can enjoy nude living and recreation while camping in a beautiful and secure place is a wonderful thing. And the people here are great – don’t get me wrong. They’re all great. But it’s not a typical cross-section of society. There just aren’t any families here anymore. And we’re concerned about that. We want Callie, and any other kids we might someday have, to see this as both fun and as a goodness – not a place that’s stale and boring and just for grown-ups and not for others their own age. Know what I mean?”

Julie said, “Yeah, I guess so.” Jeff nodded to show he understood.

Then Brian said, “This is something we’ve talked a lot about and given a lot of thought to.” After a pause, he said, “We’re thinking about not renewing our membership next year.”

“What?! No.” Julie exclaimed. “You can’t do that. You can’t!”

Jeff added, “No, you guys introduced us to this place. It wouldn’t be the same without you.”

“It wouldn’t be the same and it wouldn’t be any fun anymore without you guys,” Julie said, really starting to show how upset she was.

I said, “Well, we’d rather it not be like that, but things being like they are, I don’t know that it makes any sense for us to continue.”

She said, “Well…I’ll just tell everyone back at camp and we’ll all talk you out of it.”

Brian said emphatically, “No, don’t do that.”

“Brian’s right,” I said. “You’ve heard everybody. It’s like all weekend they keep saying, ‘oh, we need more young people like you guys here.’ And I agree, but just sayin’ it all the time is not going to make it happen. But then again, I don’t really know what would.”

“Oh, I guess I know what you mean,” Julie replied dejectedly, “But I don’t like it.”

“Sorry,” I said. “We didn’t know you’d take it so hard.”

“Does Beth know?” she asked after a pause.

“No, we haven’t mentioned it to her,” Brian answered. Then to me, he asked, “How do you think she’ll feel?”

“I hadn’t thought about it ‘til just now, but I bet she’ll be more upset than we think.”

“That’s probably true,” Julie said.

“I guess maybe we’d better tell her soon,” I said.

“Probably so,” Brian responded.

We continued on our walk, talking about other things and enjoying the day. But our mention of ending our membership with the campground had cast kind of a pall over the moment for all of us. For Brian and I, this wasn’t something we had to do or even wanted to do, but there didn’t seem to be much future in it the way it was. It seemed like we were now going in a different direction than the camp. We knew we wanted to participate in activities as a family and with other families, but we knew we’d miss this. We had also observed how our friends, Ann and Jim never came any more because of all their kids’ activities that took up enough of every weekend that they couldn’t ever get over here and we knew that in a few years that probably would be the case with us, too. We knew we couldn’t really make this a priority when so many other things were family-oriented and this no longer was.

Later at mealtime, we told Beth what we were thinking. Her immediate response was not unlike Julie’s. Julie and I glanced at each other acknowledging our earlier thoughts about her. Brian and I explained our reasons behind our decision and she seemed to understand, saying that it was our decision, but I could detect a sense of real disappointment. Again, a feeling of gloom settled over our gathering.

* * *

Next day we were sitting around our picnic table having lunch (sounds like all we do is eat, doesn’t it?) and talking about anything and everything when Jeff spoke up in a tone that indicated he was changing the subject, this according to a plan unbeknownst to us. “OK guys, Julie and I have been talking and thinking this through and we have some ideas – something we want to throw out to you. So just hear us out on this, OK?”

We agreed. Brian and I could tell they were serious by their tone of voice and demeanor. And I could see what was happening: Jeff was setting it up and then handing off to Julie. It’s been fun watching them as a couple learn to play to each others strengths.

“Alright,” Julie began, looking each of us in the eye to make sure she had the floor as well as our attention. “This is about your decision not to renew your membership next year. You probably guessed that. OK then. So the problem as you stated it is this: no families here. No families…that is…except one. Yours.”

Julie’s dad is an attorney and, having been influenced by all of that as she grew up, she was now proceeding to establish her argument. It was a process; one that was going to take some time.

And so she continued. “Now if you take away your family then you truly do have…no families. So as you can see, that only makes matters worse – not better.” Brian started to say something, but she abruptly held up her hand and cut him off. “Ah-ah-ah-ah…you said you’d hear us out…so…just shut up. OK? Now, where was I? Oh yeah…I was talking about how that would just make matters worse and I was about to point out how you, Sunny, have said that we shouldn’t let the bad overpower the good; how you can’t let a truly good thing get lost just because there is something bad attacking it or messing it up. Am I right? You’ve said it – many times - you know you have.

“Well then, it seems to me that this is pretty much like that. You’re letting the goodness of coming to this good place get lost because you think it’s bad that there are no families here except for yours. OK, OK. I can buy that. But…it does not change the fact that this is a good place and we – all of us – have had…and are having…good times here. I don’t mean just fun-fun, happy-happy, ha-ha times. I mean really good, friendship building, relationship deepening good times. Yeah? Yeah. The lack of other families is kind of a bad thing, but it’s not a bad-bad thing. It’s just kind of an I-wish-it-was-a-little-different sort of a thing. Know what I mean? Of course you do.

“So now then…what to do? What do we do about this I-wish-it-was-a-little-bit-different thing to make this goodness even…gooder! Think about this: we – I’m talkin’ us, you guys, and Beth, too – all of us have a lot of friends, right? There’s some overlap there between us, but there’s a lot of exclusives, too. Especially with you, Beth. Right? Right. Now, add ‘em all up and we’re talking about a boat load of people.

“So…where am I going with all this? So glad you asked. It’s like this. If we – all of us – consider our circles of friends – separately and together – and work on telling some of them – selected ones - about this good way of enjoying the outdoors – I’m talking about those who we think might be open to it – and with those that are, consider inviting them here. You know, over time and with a lot of preparation and explanation. Then that would a) get more people around our age here and b) a lot of the people our age that might come are either already married, some with a kid or two, or maybe will be eventually.”

After a pause, she said, “OK, so what do you think? It’s not an instant solution, but ya gotta admit it has promise. It has potential.” She was in selling mode now. Brian and I looked at each other and then expressed some concerns about acceptance and a few doubts about participation.

She countered with, “Not to worry! Jeff and I have already got it figured out! And here’s the deal. We start with the ones we know that used to come here but stopped. You know the ones, Sunny. You stay in contact with them, right? And Beth, you’ve met them, right? At least some of them. And I know some of them, too, so if we all contact them over the winter and start talking about all meeting here next season, we could get them to come. I know we could. And maybe get them to bring someone…a spouse, a significant other, even just a friend – whatever their situation. I say we start there, really talk it up and see what happens. I think if they come once, that’ll get them started and they’ll come again. What do you say?”

Brian and I looked at each other again for a moment. Then Julie kicked it up a notch saying, “Come on! We challenge each of you to get even just one person here next summer. Just one! You know you can do it. You too, Beth. You’re as into this as we are and you have friends. Surely there’s at least one of them that you’d like to share this with. You know there is.”

I guess Julie was expecting an immediate resounding agreement, and when she didn’t get it, she exclaimed, “Oh come on, people! You know I’m right. And you all know we’re right about liking to be out here like this. This is part of who we are. We need to share it. We need to share ourselves. We do. Cautiously, yes, but we need to do this. And we’ve got all winter long to make something happen. And what else are we gonna do? Thank about it - not much. Better to be doing something to make things better than just – I don’t know – griping and whining and wishing things were somehow different than they are. What good is that!”

There was a brief period of silence as Julie’s words sank in. Brian and I glanced at each other. Without a word, we knew we were in agreement that Julie and Jeff were right and that we ought to give their suggestions a try. Then turning to Jeff and Julie, he said, “OK, we’re in.”

Jeff responded first, saying, “Yes!!!”

And Julie followed up with, “I knew you’d come around. I know you guys too well. You couldn’t not do this.” Then to Beth, “How ‘bout you, girl?”

“Yeah, I’m in, too,” she said, then added, “I know you’re right, but I have no idea how I’ll invite anyone to come here.”

Brian replied, “Sometimes we have to start down a path that takes us to where we want to be, Sis, without knowing exactly what we’ll run into along the way or how we’ll deal with it when we do.”

“Well, I may need help with that, Bro,” she replied.

“You got it,” Brian said. Then to Jeff and Julie, he said now in return-the-challenge mode, “I just wanna know how you guys think you’re going to get anybody here when you hardly ever come yourselves.”

Julie said, “We’ve already talked about that. And we’ve decided that we do need to make this more of a priority and somehow make sure we get over here more often. A couple times a month, if not more, during the summer.”

Jeff added, “Like you said, Brian, we don’t know how, but we’ll figure it out as we go.”

* * *

We had a great time the rest of the day, hanging out with others, taking little walks and enjoying the fact that we had not a care in the world while we were there. Callie was great the whole time. The full weekend of camping fazed her not the slightest (and therefore, not her parents!).

When it was time to go, it was bitter-sweet knowing that this was the last time here until spring, but also looking ahead to the challenge of trying to reinvigorate the interest of some friends to return to the campground. Add to that the possibilities and challenges of introducing friends to the idea of coming here for the first time and all that that might entail. Julie was right about a lot of things. Sometimes we need encouragement and a fresh perspective for our own good. And who better to provide that than the ones who love us and already know us so well.