Summercamp

Summercamp was definitely the place where I got to experience my summer romance.

Yes, it is true that I was already in a romantic relationship with my not-yet boyfriend, but Summercamp was like the water and sunshine which helped our romance blossom. It was the most enjoyable three days of the new year.

Most of our morning was spent inside listening to our guest speaker preach, but the afternoons we had mostly to ourselves. On the first afternoon a whole bunch of us headed down to Soldier's Beach. It was a scorchingly hot 40+ degree day. We skipped across the hot sand and dove into the refreshingly cold waves.

Now I do not like waves. In fact I don't like most things about the beach; the sand, the constantly dirty feet, the wind, the sunburn and the seaweed. So it was a BIG deal for me to even be in the water, but it was just too hot to be anywhere else.

I was happy enough to sit in the surf close to shore, but to my dismay Lachlan headed further out into deeper water. He motioned to me to come and join him, but I was very reluctant. I am not a strong swimmer and waves terrify me. But I loved this man and I wanted to spend as much time with him as possible.

Slowly and tentatively I swam out to him. I could feel my heart racing and I tried my hardest to not panic and turn back. The whole time the temptation to give up ran through my mind. I finally reached my man and stayed as close to him as possible.

Each giant wave rolled by in two second blocks and I simply let myself float over the top of them. Lachlan got concerned that I would wear myself out and told me to dive under the waves instead.

So I followed his advice.

I lost my tankini top...

My embarrassment was indescribable. I didn't think Lachlan saw anything, but I was still stunned and decided to head back to the shore. I was convinced- waves hated me and I them.

I now know that Lachlan did actually see the event, which does not encourage me to go into the surf any more than it did that horrible day nearly 2 years ago.

My embarrassment was over yet either. About half an hour later, Lachlan and I decided to head up to the rock pools to, um, look at the sea life...really we were off to find a secluded spot to make out in.

As we walked along the beach we went through a bit of a slippery patch and before I knew it I was on my back staring up at the bewildered face of Lachlan.

Red-faced and sore I picked myself up and trodded along (carefully). Lachlan kept asking me if I was OK, which I repeatedly said I was, but I didn't think my recovery from embarrassment was ever going to happen after this trip to the beach.

One late afternoon, well after my humilating experience after the beach, Lachlan and I lay on the grass staring up at the twilight. The whole time he kept telling me how much he loved me and thought I was amazing. I just lay there drinking in his words, cuddling them close to my heart, lest I forget and mess up the good that was in my life. Later on we swung on the swings and bounced on the trampoline, enjoying the innocence of our friendship and the young, fresh beginnings of our romance.

The time passed quickly and soon we found ourselves back on the road (minus random cafes and pit toilets) heading back to Penrith. Lachlan sat in the back of my car, and passed his hand through to my seat, quietly resting it on my shoulder. I felt so close to him.

Despite the events I wished to forget at the beach, I loved every moment of Summercamp. It started off 2009 on a high and set in motion the best events of my life...