Oh the People I have Met!
One of the things I have enjoyed most about my journey as an author is all of the people I get to meet. I took that whole experience up a notch when I added the campground to my life! When you allow a couple hundred people to hang out in your back yard every weekend all summer you meet LOTS of people!
If you know me, or have met me at an event, you know I’m super happy, smiling, bubbly, almost to the point of nausea, over the top cheerful, and always positive! No matter the time of day, the kind of day I’m having, or where I am, if you ask me how I’m doing you’re going to get the same predictable answer. I am always “Fabulous in every way!” First thing I learned about running a campground this summer was not everyone arrives here that way! Hence the sign in the photo above that we put up at our entrance. “Happy Campers Welcome! Grumpy Ones Tolerated!”
I will always remember the first person that walked into the office this summer not happy. His vibe preceded him through the door and to be honest I “felt” him long before he even got up to the counter. I was unable to lighten his mood with my incredible charm, nor did my offer of free popsicles for his kids bring a smile to his face. Yes it’s true, the tradition we now have here at Pleasant Hill Campground of giving free popsicles to every kid, all day, every day started with a grumpy camper! This guy was Mr. Grump and he was having no part of any kind of joy at the prospect of camping with his family.
Later that night I found myself still thinking about this grumpy man and it occurred to me that I had no idea at all what was going on in this man’s life before he drove into my campground. He could have had a bad day at work, fought with his wife, gotten a flat tire on his way here, lost his favorite fishing pole, or forgot to pack the can opener! Seriously, it could have been one of a thousand reasons why even free popsicles didn’t bring a smile to his face, and you know what, it wasn’t my fault. My job was to create a magical place where families could make lasting memories. It’s up to them to choose to do so once they are here! Being able to come to terms with that early in the season saved my mental health! It also brought home the saying we see on social media so often. “Be kind to everyone you meet because you don’t know what battle they are fighting.” or something like that. It’s so true, and not until you deal with hundreds of people on a daily basis do you realize just exactly how true it is.
The best part of my summer though was learning that all people are good people. Read that again. All people are good people. I saw that day after day. I wish everyone had the opportunity to see what I saw. The world is full of really good, ordinary, kind, supportive and happy people. The people who don’t make the news headlines. The ones who aren’t fodder for the media. Just families and individuals living their best lives in quiet, positive ways. The world is a beautiful place! Or at least it is on Pleasant Hill in Hermon Maine!!
I want to share some photos with you so you can get an idea of the kind of people I met this summer.
Campers come from all across this country to stay with us. These folks were from Texas and they left me with this beautiful Sea Heart!!! I learned something and felt blessed to have met them!
I had spoken to a family from Canada on the phone when they made their reservation. She was very excited to get here and get a copy of my book. She arrived with this jar of the best honey I have ever tasted in my life! We did a honey = book kind of exchange! She loved my book but I think I got the better end of the bargain. Seriously this is some really good honey!
These folks from Florida were the absolute sweetest! They stayed with us for a month. Deeply religious people who felt that God had truly sent them too Maine. I had the wonderful opportunity one afternoon to sit and listen to their story of how the past year or so had unfolded for them. How they felt they were just being led to where God wanted them to be. They had no plans, just signs and answers kept popping up in their path that led them from one great experience to another. I shared with them my own experiences over the past two years that mirrored theirs. And although we were using different words, the sentiment, the experience, the paths were similar in every way. There is a higher force directing our lives, all you have to do is slow down, look, believe and you will see it. I hated to see them go. They gifted me a beautiful Bible when they left. We have remained in contact. They were huge fans of the book and have worked tirelessly on the road (yes they are still traveling!) to tell everyone they meet about it! Tonight I received a text message from them. They are in Athens Tennessee and met a woman at their campground there who had read my book!!! How amazing is that?
This is Dwayne. He was from Oklahoma, just passing through, on his own life journey. He carved and sold wooden flutes. He was a fascinating man that I enjoyed chatting with. One day he came into the office and asked if he could play for me. The melodious music was exactly what I needed to calm my frazzled nerves on that very busy weekend. It was like he knew what I needed. He was a blessing. I hope he comes back some day.
And on and on my summer went. I’ve often said over the past two years that my book finds the people who are supposed to hear the story. After this summer I can honestly say that the people who needed to find my campground found it. Every single person that drove down that road was led to come here, I truly believe that. We had guests here who recently lost loved ones. Others who had suffered losses of another kind. We had guests that were recently told they didn’t have much time left and wanted to spend those last precious days in this world camping. We had guests that were seeking an escape from the hectic pace of what I call “the outside world.” Every single person I met came here for a reason, and it wasn’t just camping. Some came to heal, some came to connect, some came to relax, some came to find strength. Each one of them had a story of how they ended up here and it wasn’t just “I found your website.” The reasons were varied but each one was magical. They were all led here. All of these good people were led here. Just like Bud and I were led here. The magic continues!