Oceans apart day after day

And I slowly go insane

I hear your voice on the line

But it doesn't stop the pain

If I see you next to never

How can we say forever

Wherever you go

Whatever you do

I will be right here waiting for you

Whatever it takes

Or how my heart breaks

I will be right here waiting for you

I took for granted, all the times

That I though would last somehow

I hear the laughter, I taste the tears

But I can't get near you now

Oh, can't you see it baby

You've got me goin' crazy

Wherever you go

Whatever you do

I will be right here waiting for you

Whatever it takes

Or how my heart breaks

I will be right here waiting for you

I wonder how we can survive

This romance

But in the end if I'm with you

I'll take the chance

Oh, can't you see it baby

You've got me goin' crazy

Wherever you go

Whatever you do

I will be right here waiting for you

Whatever it takes

Or how my heart breaks

I will be right here waiting for you

--Richard Marx, 'Right Here Waiting.'

I stared into the fire, letting my soul wander into its very heart, into its fiery depths. Taking me into its warm embrace and emptying my mind of worries...

I know why I joined guides, I know why I enjoy being with my patrol so much. Realisation hit me at 2am this morning. I enjoy the companionship, the camaraderie that exists between all of us as we laugh, play, hang out together, watch each other go mad over campfire preparations or comfort one another. It's just, I don't know, this bond, this knowledge that we'll all be there for one another, always and forever, even if we may not always show our care for each other openly. Though we are far apart, my heart will always be with you. Maybe. I guess. I don't really know. This feeling is hard to put a finger on.

Campfire made me..complete, somehow. I don't really know how either. As you may have already guessed, I haven't sorted out my feelings properly yet, I feel sort of..mixed up. Sitting amongst my fellow guides, all of whom had been working like slaves during the day to make this campfire come to life, some of whom were half asleep, and most of whom were tired out, felt right, like some perfect scene from a movie. Then listening to the ex-guides cheering and shouting, and the other schools doing their cheers made everything...I don't know..made the atmosphere come alive. It was beautiful, one could almost feel the atmosphere and the air around us swelling with pride and togetherness as each school's voices joined the enthusiastic crowd. It was like a wave of emotions, the climax and the anti-climax.

As the campfire progressed, every other conscious thought disappeared as I immersed myself into the whirlpool of laughter and hugs. I could only stare into the fire, and listen, enraptured.

Seeing our back-breaking labours bear fruit was perhaps the most satisfying moment of the campfire. Even though we argued, fought, sometimes even cried or complained, at the end of it all, everything fell so nicely into place, making the journey all worthwhile, like a beautiful collage. And if I wanted to take a photograph of our art, I wouldn't be able to find a camera good enough to capture all of your kindness, all the little bits and pieces of everyone's work.

And, last night, as I watched the fire slowly burning itself out, slowly dying out, like waves receding from the shore with a soft, almost silent swish, great wings sweeping across the land, I knew it had all been worth it. We had done it, and I felt at peace, comforted by the close presence of everyone who had come, of the warmth that filled the air more than words could ever say...

It was a moment, a rare moment of true happiness in a day of wondrous euphoria.

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