At the end of our conditioning every September, Coach Lamar loads us into vans and takes us down to southern Missouri to go on a spiritual life retreat. We have such a great time getting to know each other away from the court. We take a canoe trip when we first arrive. The upper classmen have a good time tipping the freshmen’s canoes. The water was really high this year which created all kinds of fun. We had guys trying to swim against the current (Lukas Weigel made it the furthest), guys going off a rope swing, and even our coaching staff doing back flips off a short cliff. (trust me…that is pretty fun to watch) A couple of guys brought fishing poles and Andrew [Crotty] and Ian [Mathews] tried to ride their canoe down a flight of stairs! Halfway through the canoeing Dr. Edlin, our team chaplain, gives us a devotional (He does this every week). Again it was what our team needed to hear.
When we get out of the river a local church helps to feed us. This is usually the highlight of the trip: a great home cooked meal. The backyard that hosts the meal is amazing: there is horseshoes, volleyball, and of course a giant area for the annual game of football. The upperclassmen again dominated the freshmen and coaches (ask Coach Lamar how many interceptions he threw). That night and the next morning we meet as a team to grow as close to each other as possible. We get deep into the Bible and also into accountability. It's a great experience to go through. There are not a lot of other colleges that do this...yet another reason that I have found MNU to be a special place!
Brenton Bell
Once a Pioneer, Always a Pioneer!
14 years ago
