Since they worked at Cowboy camp and I worked at Base camp they remained somewhat of a mystery to me. They were both Wranglers and so their day off was always Sunday. That meant that the only days I really ever saw them were Friday night and Saturday because they were off at their outpost for the rest of the week. I also watched them ride at the weekly rodeo... my favorite event of every week. I was surprised to find out, though, that Britney is one of those rare people who is both shockingly beautiful and open and friendly. She was always nice to me and, though I continued to be intimidated by her beauty and her confidence, we formed the beginnings of a friendship.
One day on my day off, my friend Raymond and I wanted to ride the horses. We arranged with the wranglers to get a couple of extra horses and take us for a ride. Ray and I showed up at the Base Camp barn a little early and saw our horses already waiting for us there, but no sign of the wranglers. So we sat down to wait. A few minutes later I would see a sight that made such an impression on me I would never forget it. Jimmy and Britney, riding side by side, came cantering over the hill toward us. Behind them were open fields and trees and there they were, as if in slow motion, riding together towards us. I sighed inwardly... maybe one day I would be able to find someone who would ride side by side with me through life, carefree and beautiful.
As camp continued, I began to reflect on whether I would return the next summer. I loved the family-like camraderie between the staff at that camp, plus the staff was a little larger to accommodate more campers and it also had all the wranglers. It seemed like they had an overabundance of fun at Cowboy camp and I was very interested in returning to that camp.
So near the end of camp I asked if I could sub at Cowboy camp for a week to become more familiar with it. After a couple weeks of pleading I was granted my request. I learned that week that Jimmy was considered an expert in wilderness survival and that he liked to make things with his hands. That week there was a camper who was diagnosed with ADHD, but his parents refused to medicate him. He got on everyone's nerves, except, apparently Jimmy's. Maybe he was attracted to Jimmy's inner calmness, or the way Jimmy tended to sit for long periods by himself carving something with his knife, but this kid treated Jimmy with worshipful adoration. He wanted to be just like Jimmy and spent any free moment around him. Jimmy responded by patiently trying to teach the poor child how to survive in the wild, or how to understand nature. One day I overheard Jimmy tell the kid to sit still for 10 minutes and study the ground in the woods, then come back and share what he saw. I went and sat down near him and watched him whittle. Feeling like a complete idiot I said, "What are you making?" To my surprise, he was making a Native American flute. He told me how he made flutes for all of Britney's nieces and nephews and how much they loved them. We talked for a few minutes, then the kid came back, much sooner then 10 minutes, to ask what the point of this exercise was. Once again, I marveled at Jimmy's overabundance of patience.
Too soon, camp was over. We had our staff bonding day at the end which culminated in a banquet that we were supposed to dress up for. I was mortified... I didn't bring one thing that would be considered dressy. I confided my shame in Britney who offered to share her clothes with me. I was surprised to hear that she had more then one outfit with her that would work for this occasion. To my even greater surprise, she pulled out at least 4 complete outfits, skirts and matching tops, and even, if you can believe it, coordinating shoes. And those were just the extras that she wasn't wearing herself! I stared at them in disbelief thinking to myself that I didn't even have that many nice outfits to wear in my closet at home. I gratefully picked one and was delighted to see that it fit.
When I got home my parents asked if there was anyone interesting at camp. I told them about all my friends at base camp and the good times we had, then I said, there's two people that I have a deep respect for. Ben Carson (he was the Indian camp director) and Jimmy Painter.
Sorry Harmony, Jimmy and Britney are still together at the end of this story... but I'll put another one up soon.
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