Sweep the Spiders Out

As I packed my bag for the long trek, I began to grow slightly nervous. I had never gone on a real camping trip before, and this camp-out was expected to last several days. As I headed out past the farms to Camp Shenandoah Boy Scout Reserve in Swoope, Virginia, I noted how far away from my house I was. I was completely isolated in the middle of the wilderness with my Dad, and a few other Cub Scout.

As all of the Webelos huddled around and while their moms and dads chatted, I can remember several boys stating that they had been camping countless times before, and that this trip was no big deal for them. Sure, I had slept in a tent before. On the other hand, I had always been in my back yard or in an expensive, nice tent that kept insects out. At Camp Shenandoah, however, we were expected to sleep in old army tents that stood above the ground on wooden planks, letting all kinds of insects inside.

After a full day of packing and unpacking, it was finally time for dinner and a campfire. We ate with all of the other scouts and went out to the fire rings located next to a lake. As the entire camp gathered around, the camp's staff proceeded to entertain the audience with countless songs, skits, and stories. At the end of the night, the fires were dimmed and we meandered back to our campsites to ready for bed. This was the part I was not looking forward to. I worried that spiders had crawled into my tent while I was away.

Once I returned to my tent, my Dad and I got ready to sleep. After brushing our teeth and washing our face, we entered the tent. Immediately, I ran back out of the tent. Close to a dozen Daddy Long-Leg Spiders were crawling on top, around, and beside my sleeping bag. I can clearly remember my Dad quickly brushing them out of the tent and telling me to calm down. I barely slept at all for the first half of the night, as I continually thought about all of the spiders that were most likely suspended above my head.

Around 3 am, I suddenly became so tired that I drifted off into sleep, amongst the almost deafening noise of cicadas in the forest. When I woke up in the morning, I was surprised by the fact that I was able to fall asleep at all. Not only did falling asleep make me forget about the spiders, but I had also conquered one of my largest fears about the weekend.

From that day onward, I was often known as the 'tent cleaner,' as I would help pick up and remove spiders and other insects from younger scouts' tents. I carried this skill with me throughout my Boy Scouting journey, and without it, the stories I want to share with you through this blog may never have occurred. Each week, I want to share with you a lesson I learned from nature through my Scouting experiences and relate it back to life. After all, aren't we are all trying to overcome our own "spiders?"

Image Credits (in order of appearance):

Image provided by Guilhem Vellut
Image provided by Nick Harper