Yes, I have—but it’s been ages since I last went camping.

When I was younger, my family used to do camping trips together pretty regularly. I remember them being a mix of fun, chaos, and a lot of unexpected “why is this happening to me?” moments. The funny thing is, I almost always ended up getting sick on those trips. It didn’t matter what we planned—I’d get severely sunburned, come down with allergies, or just randomly catch a flu. It started to feel like I was cursed when it came to camping.

One trip in particular still sticks with me. Right before we left, my cousin’s neighbor wanted to show us her new pet—a longhair guinea pig. I had no idea I was allergic to them. I held it, felt completely fine in the moment, and thought nothing of it. But once we got to the campsite, everything changed. My face swelled up like a balloon.

I remember laughing about it because, in hindsight, it looked ridiculous—but my family was completely panicking. They were trying to figure out what to do while I was sitting there realizing, once again, camping had turned into another unexpected medical adventure for me.

Even with all that, I still look back on those trips pretty fondly. They were messy, unpredictable, and honestly very “us.”