Personal Narrative: A Personal Experience On My Life

I was born and raised in New York City and lived there until the summer of 2008. In the 14 years of living in New York City, I had numerous events that influenced my life. Each event serves as a memory of something that once was. Trying to decide which memorable event from my past to write about is difficult because many of the events in my life have shaped me into the person I am. To narrow down an event, I am choosing to write about my experience of attending Green River Preserve summer camp located in North Carolina, where I learned to appreciate nature and all the living things around me.
One of the most significant experiences in my life occurred at Green River Summer Camp. Growing up in New York City, I was not exposed to very much nature.

My experiences at the YMCA camps were very enjoyable. I rotated every year between Camp Speers Eljabar, which was located in the Poconos and Frost Valley, which was located in the Catskill Mountains of New York State. Being YMCA camps, most of the children were from major cities. Most of the kids had never been out of their city before coming to camp. Camp Speers Eljabar was the first camp I attended, and there, I learned how to make friendship bracelets and roasted my first ever marshmallows. Frost Valley was the hub for New York City kids. Frost Valley was not considered a camp in my experience looking back now, because all we did was socialize. At the YMCA camps, we did occasionally go out on overnight excursions in the woods, but a snake would bite someone or a child would have an anxiety attack and we would have to cut the outing short. Looking back, the camping experiences I received from both Speers Eljabar and Frost Valley were extremely

As a city kid, I never thought in a million years that I could do something like that. Each day at Green River was a surprise. My third day away I was provided with mentors who led me on longer hikes through the Blue Ridge Mountains, and who taught me about the flora and fauna of the land. I ate fresh blueberries for the first time on my second time ever hiking. Green River Preserve was not just about the camping experience but also about the experiences of respecting yourself, the ones around you, and the land you live on. Each night we gathered around and sung camp songs. When we returned to our cabins, we explain how our days went through Rose, Bud, and Thorn. Rose is the highlight of your day, Bud is what you are looking forward to the next day, and Thorn is a bad part of your day. We hugged one another and told one another compliments, which I truly enjoyed. In the morning, before we entered the dining hall, we would wake up as a cabin and meditate together. After meditation, we had to do a quirky activity of some sort, and the quickest cabin went in first. Plastered in the main lodge of Green River were the Woodcraft Laws. There are four laws: The law of Beauty is described as being clean for both yourself and the place you live in, as well as understanding and respecting your body because it is the temple of the spirit. Be a friend of