Yesterday was one of those days where you pull an unexpected long shift. Yesterday we had 150 kids in the gym all attending a summer camp. To help have some kind of control they split them up into three groups. The first group of kids was between the ages of 5-6 which is a terrible age to explain rules to. They have no concept of what the rules mean or why they are in place so talking to them was pretty difficult. Luckily they had someone in charge that knew how to discipline them and make them listen. For two hours we had them in the gym. Once they left the next group came in. The ages from there were 7-8. 

Now that age is right around the corner of being manageable. They know more, they understand bigger words, they are starting to get into the groove of life and have some idea of what is actually happening. So for that group it wasn’t too bad. And of course, the second group was smaller than the first. So having them in the gym wasn’t terrible. To be honest they were the most quiet out of the three groups and we saw some really good future climbers in that group. 

The third group was the loudest but easiest to talk to. The ages were from 9-12 which meant that they knew what you were saying and could break down the rules without much trouble. Yet they were screaming the entire time they were in the gym. Right then and there I thought I was going to lose it. I had a headache, I was hungry, and just over it by the time they came through. Not only that but we had to give them rental shoes so by the time they were finished I had a stack of at least 30 rental shoes to wipe down, air out and then put away. 

By the time the summer camp was finished it was 3 p.m and I was ready to go home. Yet there was an unexpected turn. I found out that I was in for the long haul. I got stuck with pulling a twelve hour shift. Yes, twelve hours. Don't get me wrong, the pay was real good but, my suffering was not. I was so not ready for that and when cleanup came around at 8 p.m I was so done and ready to have a drink. Twelve hours and seven of it was with screaming kids everywhere. Let’s just say that after I got home, I had a drink, a shower, and I went to bed. Kids are just so exhausting to me and being around them for that long really drained me and turned my brain to mush. 

But hey, life is like that. Sometimes you get thrown unexpected shifts and you just have to suck it up and deal with it.