The prompt for this week is Summer Camp.
I wanted to make a different story where older people are taken into account. They also have the right to enjoy summer camps.
I look forward to your comments.
Now the story:
The Johnson and Streep families always used to send their children together to summer camp. It was only for a week and that way the couples also took advantage of a vacation, alone as a couple. They said that the week was a time for them to renew their relationship. In addition, the grandparents were happy to take care of their grandchildren. They were in constant communication with the camp guides, an attitude they always maintained after the little girl, Louise Anne, then 6 years old, was stung by a bee and swelled up all over. She had never had any allergy symptoms until then.
That tradition, as well as the beautiful friendship that united them, was continued by their descendants.
More than 40 years had passed since these events; both grandparents Arthur and Melanie Jhonson and Anne Louise and Peter Janot had passed away. Only the long-lived children, Ruth Johnson and Anthony Janot, were still alive. Sheila and Louise Anne Janot as well as Jack Johnson were deceased.
Both widowed Ruth and Anthony decided to get together to remember another anniversary over summer camp. They would celebrate together with a sweet snack. Each would bring their favorite dishes: apple strudel, sablé pastries, peach panna cotta, chocolate, coffee and tea.
-What pleasant and unforgettable memories-, Ruth commented as she savored the hot chocolate.
-Yes, I wish we were younger-, replies Anthony, almost choking on the sablé pastries.
-What if we suggested that our children go to camp-, Ruth asks excitedly.
-That's only for kids. There are no camps for grandparents-, says Anthony.
-I agree, but they can be the pioneers. I'll call them to propose it. They are already retired and their grandchildren are different, they like other activities. They are free to enjoy themselves. ......
I assure you that they would evoke fond memories of campfires and spells performed by the light of the full moon-, explains Ruth.
To which Anthony immediately tells him:
-Be careful because there were also unpleasant events such as the snake bite, the burning of the tent, indigestion with marshmallows and ghosts that appeared unexpectedly. Also at the last camp, which they attended, the supervisor was always in a bad mood. He had no patience for teenagers-.
-Oops! You only see the negative. That happened in another era. They are now retired people who understand. They have assimilated the lessons of that stage of life-, argues the restless and optimistic Ruth.
They finished their snack and each one returned home. But Ruth continued with her initiative. The next day she would invite her daughters, Claudette and Johanna, to a lunch to tell them about the camp plan. The daughters would attend so as not to disappoint their restless mother. Everything went according to plan. But after the lunch was over and they patiently listened to her, they told her that there was no such thing. The indomitable Ruth insisted and with an energetic tone of voice she commented:
-But you are bored and tired of being at home. Cheer up. Maybe this experience will help you to get ideas for the innovative business you want to run-
Johanna, the youngest of the sisters, hurries to answer:
-Okay, Mom, I'm not promising anything, I'll just try. I'll tell the Janots about the idea. Edward, Richard and Julie are also retired. I have to come up with a detailed plan to get them excited-.
Claudette remained pensive.... She mentally pondered what her sister would come up with. She was reminded of the camp when the mischievous and restless Johanna always did something unexpected.
Johanna reviews several tour packages offered by La Magnífica Travel Agency, but she gets nothing. She only sees a supposed camp in Venezuela, a country unknown to her. She sees the photos, investigates and is fascinated by the spectacular, unique and idyllic landscapes. Worthy for a movie adventure...... She, as always, would invent what to do. She set to work.
After she had everything ready she supplied the Janot's with the plan. They were all fascinated. It was only a week's spectacular stay. They would take the flight from the USA to Venezuela. There they would rent a car that would take them to the camp. They did not know what fate had in store for them...........
They arrived safely in the foreign country, spent the night in their capital city. The next day they rented a car with a driver that would take them to the town of Choroní. This coastal town is famous for having the best cocoa in the world. Everything went well from Caracas to Maracay, noticing only the strong heat.
From Maracay they began to climb a winding road where only one car could fit. They were going at excessive speed, but they were looking at the green landscape. Suddenly and without warning they ran head-on into a bus coming in the opposite direction. SCREEEEEEEEEECH SCREEEEEEEEEECH ...Unexpectedly, the driver of the car brakes, insulting the bus driver.
-Excuse me, they are going at full speed so as not to take the curves in the road, and that's why they have to sound the horn. That is the warning to warn the other cars-, says the driver.
Richard, the group's interpreter, would translate for his companions. Too much excitement to begin with, thought the fearful Julie.
They continue on the road, it starts to rain heavily, the road is almost impossible to see. Julie begins to worry more than she should. She hears a noise that she does not recognize........ have to stop, the river has risen and there is no passage. At that moment Julie bursts into tears....... she does not want to continue, Richard gave her a tranquilizer. They wait for an hour for the river to recede and continue......
They arrived at night at the "camp", which turned out to be a small hotel located near the beach.
Once they were all settled, the men decided to go to the famous boardwalk. There they would find out about the festivities of San Juan. The next day they would invite the ladies for a swim at the beach. They loved it. They enjoyed eating fried fish.
On the third day they would go to Chuao, a cocoa town with an 18th century church. For this they would have to board a boat. There the guide would take them to the haciendas and they would see what the farmers did with the cocoa fruits. Everything was wonderful. They tasted the typical river shrimp, unknown to them, as well as the famous chocolate prepared with spices.
But already on the fourth day the curious Claudette decides to walk alone and observe the nature...... She is slowly enjoying herself at the side of the road when she notices, inside the river, that they are doing something strange, never seen by her before. She decides to go into the river to find out but ....... she feels that someone is grabbing her by the arm, preventing her from continuing. The stranger explains to her that they are doing a stripping and that she cannot go in. To which Claudette, in her little Spanish, asks:
-What is that?-
The stranger replies that it is used to ward off evil spirits and bring good luck. Oh! Oh! Claudette's big blue eyes widened, she wants them to do the same. ........ The stranger spoke to the ensalmador, as they call the person who does that job, and summoned her an hour later. Claudette decided to wait patiently. The ensalme was executed and she returned "light" to the hotel.
That night they had planned to sleep in a cocoa plantation near the town. When they arrived they saw the old colonial house almost destroyed. There was no bathroom, no water, no electricity and they could only sleep in hammocks that they would hang in an open place, next to where they kept the dried cocoa. Julie did not like this, she began to feel uneasy but said nothing. They all went to sleep as instructed.
After two hours Julie and Johanna felt that "someone" was moving their hammocks. There is no breeze. They get up and see no one. Then they began to hear some strange sounds, like a telephone ringing. Then the crying of children. Julie wakes up the others, who get annoyed and say: -Stop bothering us-.
The two friends go back to bed but see a black silhouette in the distance; then they hear the sound as if they were changing grains from one container to another. They decide to stay awake. In the morning breakfast was brought to them, some succulent dogfish "empanadas" that made them forget everything that had happened. They decided to return to the hotel and not leave again until they returned to their country. There they would learn that in colonial times the slaves emptied the cocoa beans, right where they heard the sounds. The cries were of two sons, of the owner of the "hacienda", who died drowned. That is why they say that the man goes around as "soul in pain" (that is how they call the spirits of the dead who cannot rest in peace) looking for his children.
It was already the fifth day of their stay. Claudette and the men decided to participate, in the evening, in the feast of St. John. There they would be playing drums. Something exotic for them.
The men were enraptured to see the women dancing. Richard was approached by a mulatto woman, but he rejected her. Immediately comes another one called "mulatto of fire". Edward was captivated to see how she moved her hips to the rhythm of the drums, he decided to accept the invitation........ That night, the secretly in love Edward would have an exuberant night of pleasure he would never forget. .......
The next day they would return to Caracas to take the flight back to their country.
Already on the road, everyone sees a person, walking alone, who breaks through the wall of a house.
Julie screams: -Aaaaay! Don't tell me you didn't see her!-
Everyone reassures her ........ The driver tells her that she is the soul in pain of Maritza, a mulatto woman who was killed for being unfaithful to her husband. They did not talk any more about it.
They returned to their country but the enterprising Claudette and Johanna, with the experiences they had lived, brought back with them the idea of creating an innovative business: a summer camp for grandparents.
ENGLIHS VERSION by https://www.deepl.com/es/translator