By Ben S.I, Trivandrum
I’d like to narrate my experiences of attending SBS camps for the past 4 years:
Regional Camp 2006: I came for my very first camp, and was exploring it. It was a centre camp where none of the main leaders were present, but the Trivandrum regional leaders. I, Levi, Benji, Nicky, Paul Prince, Ann and Priscilla were there. Our dormitory was somewhere across the main centre’s entrance. Our facilities were limited in the number. What made me really jealous was when I found out that the dormitory for girls was full of bunker beds.
And my back used to keep aching after having slept the first night on a straw mat placed on the floor. The best part was that me and the boys (with M.K Chacko Uncle being our leader) got a private room for ourselves. The routine was quite impressive, with all of us getting up at 6 in the morning to do our daily routine, and going at 7 in the morning for our breakfast. It was really good, but not as good as the camp I attended in 2007.
General Camp 2007: The General Camp attracted nearly 1500 students from all over Kerala ranging from 10 to 18 years old. Everyone was there, including the Thrissur group, out of which I knew no one at all. I, Benji, Prince, Levi, and Bobby (our leader) sang a medley of 2 songs. Bobby’s sister took a video of it. I was nowhere to be found in it, as I was standing behind. This camp was in Kumbanad at the famous Noel Memorial School. We slept on the floor inside a huge school hall.
One day, when we went to take a bath, a bunch of kids started calling us Americans because of our constant use of English. I felt like confronting them (not to beat them up) to tell them not to call us. That incident finally made me realize that many do have serious issues with English, and are the most interested in learning it. We did a group song with the girls. It turned out to be a flop. The sharp voices actually ruined the whole thing. But I had a really good experience and it was a wonderful camp.
Teens Camp 2008: This was my first Teens’ Camp. And I was happy when I found out that my aunt’s house was just a walking distance away from the camp centre. It was really good. But the song sung by me, Benjamin and Ann turned out to be a flop as usual. When it comes to the food, I was really impressed as the cooks served us Parotta every morning. I learned about teenage issues for the first time in life. As of now, I think twice before hitting on a girl.
And I finally met the kids from Thrissur, with Bibin and Stephen being the most famous out of them. I enjoyed Johnson Uncle’s classes on cults, and Thomas Varghese uncle’s class. Chandapulla Philip’s classes on the Charismatic Movement in Kerala was really good. Thank God I stopped attending the meetings conducted by a Pentecostal church in Hyderabad. And after the camp was over, I went to Aunt Omana’s house along with my friends. An interesting fact is that I used to go to her house for taking bath every morning during camp days.
Teens Camp 2009: This was a camp for which I wasn’t eligible at all. I was 18, but still wanted to come back for another year because I was still a teenager. I felt a little bad because Praveen wasn’t there. But Shaijan uncle made up for the loss by playing the piano really well. The schedule, as AT uncle said, was loose compared to the 2008 edition. On talent night, me, Benji and Levi sang a medley of three songs. Had I not gone and told Godson uncle, our item would have been cancelled, and I would have had to regret for a year.
And there was a difference in this camp compared to the previous one. Due to the contributions made by various children for SBS, the camp centre’s construction reached stage 2. I really enjoyed this camp, as it was gonna be my last one as a student. The testimonies went on till 3 in the morning. And John Abraham called me, Benji, Levi and the entire Thrissur camp for a discussion at the conference hall. It went on till 4 in the morning. We discussed mainly on topics like our quite times with God, and youth meetings.
I wanna come back to this camp as a leader AND I WILL, NO MATTER WHERE I AM.