Second Set of Lessons from a Week-Long Bible Camp, Part 8

This is my second-to-last blog taken from three years of "lessons learned." I'll post one note tomorrow that's appropriately titled, "Don't Forget About De-Mobilization."

Military Wisdom Says "Walk the Ground"

When a military unit occupies a new position, the first thing a troop leader does is to "walk the ground." The commander learns the lay of the land, notes likely enemy avenues of approach and looks for ideal places to spot weapons. He does this to avoid any unpleasant surprises on the battlefield.

Likewise, the camp chef must tour the kitchen and dining facilities, especially when using the kitchen for the first time. A trip to the camp--I toured Daybreak Camp in February 2002--removes unnecessary surprises.

I learned, for instance, that while the kitchen had two mixers (a 10-quart commercial model and a 5-quart Kitchen Aid), the larger of the two didn't have sufficient capacity to prepare enough dough for 150 campers in one batch. Though this wan't earth shattering news, it told me that I would have to allot enough time to prepare two batches of the pizza dough and the cinnamon roll dough on their respective days.