Greetings Camp Bighorn Family,
It is now close to the end of first semester. I and most others feel
as if it has gone by so quickly. I am excited for what will be coming
next semester, yet at the same time I don’t really want this one to
end. Granted, it has been hard. There have been many academic
challenges. There have been challenges within our team, and also
within the Prairie community as a whole. One thing that has been an
issue this semester is learning how to balance our time between
homework and friends. Sometimes it feels as if we have to choose just
one or the other. But for the most part, I think we have done a good
job in learning to balance the two.
Through these challenges I have seen growth in my own life, as well as
in the lives of my Sherpa teammates. It has been cool to see everyone
willing to engage even the hard things. It has also been neat to see
our different leadership abilities come to light throughout this
semester in the various circumstances we have found ourselves in.
At the beginning of the year, we were a little nervous about having to
spend an entire semester on Prairie campus. Our experience last year
taught us that Explore and the rest of the students had a hard time
relating to each other. However, all of us have enjoyed being on
campus this year. Most of the team has said that our stay on campus is
a highlight of the year. Here are some of the activities we have done
to incorporate into the Prairie community:
Slacklining - We would set up slacklines every day the weather was
nice and it became a cool community event. It created a nice
icebreaker to get to know some of the PBC students.
Meals - Especially before the 1st years came back to Prairie, we had
no choice but to blend into the main Prairie body during meals. This
also helped to break the ice and some of the awkwardness between
Explore and the rest of the school. After the 1st years came back, we
also served a little bit as a bridge between them and everyone else.
Rock Wall - Emily, Jesse, Abe, and I all worked at the rock wall on
campus this year. This was another way to get involved in what was
going on at Prairie.
Classes - We had classes with the rest of the college this year, which
helped create a common bond between us. We weren’t doing something
completely separate and different as we did last year.
Sports - There were various intramural sports this year on campus
which we participated in
These were a few of the main things, but there were also many other
smaller activities we each were involved in here on campus. We got to
know the Prairie community better, and they got to know us.
Throughout the semester we have had team and individual discussions
about what the weight of Glory means. Last night, during our weekly
Impact Group meeting, we took time to reflect again what it means to
carry the weight of Glory. Of course, each of us had a little
different take on it, but two common themes that I saw were that we
cannot carry it in our own strength, and that a big purpose of
carrying it is for the benefit of others.
Many things have happened in my own life this semester, and I am still processing through them. One of the things I have appreciated the most is all the conversations I have had with various people, including interns and directors. Many people have been willing to listen to me, to ask questions, to challenge me, encourage me, and walk with me this year. I am excited that we will soon be down at camp and I will be able to step back into fellowship with y’all. I have really begun to realize the immense value of relationships this year. On another note, the food at Prairie has improved since last year, but I know we are all still very much looking forward to eating Dave and Jen’s cooking 
God bless and have a Merry Christmas!
Garrett Boon, on behalf of Team Sherpa
