Yesterday we returned to our house in Bridgton after 44 days at Baptist Park summer camp in Mapleton, Maine.  I am the director at the camp, Naomi and Jo are counselors, Sue is does a little of everything, and Rose has lots of fun and freedom.  I’ve written a few times about our summer, and it was one of our best years yet in many ways.  But one thing I haven’t written much about is the sense of community that rises up in what is basically a communal setting, albeit a temporary one.

There are a handful of middle aged folks that live at the camp: Ray, our maintenance guy; Jim, a local pastor; Mary and Kathy, the cooks; Kelly, the lifeguard, and Sue and me.  The rest of the staff is all teens and twenty-somethings.  These ‘kids’ work incredibly hard over the summer. More than that, they worm their way into our hearts, and we always have a hard time saying good-bye.  This summer was no different.

Being the last to leave the grounds, there’s a real emptiness on Saturday afternoon when everyone else has headed home.  During those hours yesterday, I fought a real temptation to try to fill that emptiness with new plans.  It occurred to me that this is exactly what has turned many Christians into retreat- concert- festival- conference- junkies.  The let-down after a deeply spiritual experience,  and the sudden loss of an intense community of like minded people, is downright painful.  It is not unlike the post-holiday let down many people feel each January.  I experience this each winter.  I experience a similar feeling when I finish a good book.  I felt the same emptiness after seeing Phil Keaggy in concert.  I couldn’t listen to any other guitarist for days.

But here’s the thing:  There’s something painfully holy about endings.  I understand why people want to plan, dream, and pursue the next ‘big thing’, but I think it’s healthier, holier, to savor the memories, experience sentiment, grieve, and let the good-byes soak in and a few tears roll.  The fact is, as Maine folk singer David Mallett sings, “This old life ain’t nothing but a long good-bye.”  The feelings of disappointment, loneliness, and loss need to be experienced fully when the good-byes occur.

 Jesus was called “A man of sorrows” (Isaiah 53:3) even as He also was accused of being a party animal (Mt. 11:19).  All of our emotions are gifts from God, and we need – in fact, we have the privilege – of experiencing all of them.