A Camping Diary: Who Did What?

Sunday Evening: The Missing Fuel Bottle

1I expected our camping weekend to give me something impressive to write about: a difficult trail, perhaps, or a meal cooked perfectly outdoors. Instead, I keep thinking about a fuel bottle sitting on a shelf at home. Before we left on Friday, my cousin Selin and I divided the equipment list. She handled the sleeping gear. I accepted the cooking supplies.

2At the campsite, Uncle Tomas unfolded the table while we unpacked. The stove was lifted from its case by Selin. I arranged the bowls beside it, already imagining hot noodles. Then I reached into the cooking bag and found an empty side pocket. I searched the bag twice, although the second search could not produce something I had never packed.

3My first diary note said, “The fuel bottle was left behind.” The words looked tidy on the page. I had left the fuel bottle on the kitchen shelf. That version made me uncomfortable because it named the person responsible. Selin had checked her part of the list, and Uncle Tomas had loaded the bags we gave him. Neither had agreed to check mine.

4Fortunately, we had packed sandwiches for the drive and enough other food for dinner. Uncle Tomas put the unused stove away. No one delivered a speech about responsibility, which somehow made me listen more closely when Selin suggested checking tomorrow’s supplies together. I agreed, but I wanted her to understand that checking together did not mean taking over my jobs.

5On Saturday, I spread our list across the table. Beside each item, we wrote the name of the person who would pack it. Then we checked the actual bags instead of trusting the check marks alone. Selin asked, “Has anyone counted the water bottles?” I counted them while she inspected the food containers. The work took less time than my embarrassed searching had taken.

6Before we drove home on Sunday, every borrowed item was returned to its case. I checked the cooking bag myself, including the empty fuel pocket. Tonight, I crossed out my first sentence about the bottle and wrote the less comfortable version. The weekend was enjoyable, but my diary does not need to make every moment look impressive. It needs to record what happened, including what I did.