Valentine List

I was a Camp Fire Girl. Not a Girl Scout or Brownie, but a Camp Fire Girl. Actually, I was first a Blue Bird then a Camp Fire Girl. We had weekly meetings, field trips, camp outs, paid dues, and instead of working towards badges like the Girl Scouts we worked for wooden beads.

The beads were earned by completing projects, learning how to build fires, use a pocket knife properly (my personal favorite, I was a tom boy), tie knots, cook, sew (yuk!), community service, you name it and the Camp Fire Girls more then likely were able to find the subject and associated project for bead earning in the handbook.

No where in the handbook was there a page, paragraph, not even a mention of holiday parties. But that was okay. My troop held them anyway. I especially remember a Valentine soiree. Each individual member was suppose to make, not buy, valentines for each of the other girls. My troop was made up of 13 girls.

To be organized my mom decided we needed to make a list of the girls names so no one would accidentally be forgotten. How horror able would that be if one or two girls did not receive 13 Valentines? Well I was not going to be the one to cast that nightmare upon one of my fellow troopers.

The list was made, and only 12 names were written. I had forgotten someone. Uughh. Who was it? We double checked. Only 12 names. I remember my mom saying " Don't worry about it, the name will come to you, go ahead and start making the valentines." I made all 13 valentines and still the name did not pop into my head. I couldn't believe that I forgot a name. I checked again, saying each name out loud, hoping that saying them out loud would trigger my memory. The trigger did not happen.

I sat at the dining room table, tapping the pencil, trying hard to remember the 13th name. I laid my head on the table and started tapping the pencil on my head. I rubbed my eyes, hummed a little tune to help me unfog my brain. The pressure was on, I could not think of the name. Frustration was getting the best of me. I was about to call it a day, when my mom said she knew who the 13th girl was. She chuckled and said "When I tell you the name, your going to laugh." I just looked at her. She said " Think about it. If there are 13 girls in the troop, and you are one of them, how many names will be on the list?" Oh great a math word problem, like the train in Detroit left at 6pm traveling 60 mph, wait!!!! I get it, I'm the 13th girl, there really should only be 12 names on the list!! Triumph!

Not only was the list accurate, but I figured out a math word problem. (sort of)