Malibu

Crisp, salty, fresh air blew through my hair as the boat made its way through the Princess Louisa Inlet. AFTER 15 HOURS OF TRAVELLING—TEN HOURS OF DRIVING, TWO HOURS OF FERRIES, AND THREE HOURS OF BEING ON A BOAT—WE HAD MADE IT. WHILE the Princess (name of the boat) was pulling up to the dock all I remember is a bunch of overly happy people screaming and jumping up and down. I thought we were going to a crazy island. I soon realized they were welcoming us. UNTIL that point I had been a little nervous of what to expect of my upcoming week, but once I realized how happy these strangers were to meet us, I knew that this was about to be the best week of my life.  

WHEN I had signed up to go to YoungLife’s camp called “Malibu”, I had no idea what to expect. I didn’t even know what YoungLife was! For some reason though, I had felt compelled to sign up for it. It was probably my teacher who had advertised it to us. She was a teacher that I absolutely adored, WHO also happened to be involved in YoungLife, thus I followed in her lead and somehow ended up in Malibu, Canada the summer going into my junior year in high school.

BEFORE arriving at Malibu (or seeing it) I had no idea what to expect. BECAUSE this was my first time really being away from home I was nervous. But upon catching my first glimpse of Malibu, I was in love. It was absolutely the most breathtaking place I had ever been to. Just the fact that it’s nestled in an inlet gives you a little idea of how beautiful it is. But add the mountains and towering trees that surround it and it’s nothing like you can imagine. Everywhere I looked I was amazed.

AS the week went on I soon realized that not only my surroundings were amazing, but absolutely everything about Malibu was amazing: MALIBU WAS LITERALLY HOME AWAY FROM HOME. From the zip-line and Frisbee golf course, to the battle-tubing and bead-making; Malibu had everything a kid could dream of.

There was one word that popped into my mind with pretty much everything that I experienced during my week at Malibu: incredible. Signing up to go to Malibu was the best decision I have ever made; especially since it was such an impulse decision. IF you ever get the opportunity to go to a place called Malibu, located up in Canada, I highly encourage you to take that opportunity and experience the best place on this earth. ALTHOUGH I have not been back to Malibu since that summer going into my junior year, my mind (AND HEART) often wander back to that breath-taking place, filled with life-changing memories that will be with me forever.