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This blog will be short because I want to appreciate this last full day at camp.

 

We have had an excellent summer and have adored your children while they have been here.

 

I have been watching the counselors this week. It has been fun to see them realize that our shared journey is coming to a close.

 

In May, we came together. Some of us were returners, but others were at camp for the first time. In fact, many were in the US for the first time. They arrived in late May and began to learn a new schedule, culture and even language.

 

During orientation, everything was novel – sometimes exciting, other times confusing. But we came together over those two weeks and waited for the campers to arrive.

 

When the first kids got here, we dove in. As a group, we had more enthusiasm than experience, but we had a great session.

 

We then had another and another. Each term has its own gifts and challenges. As the summer progresses, we become more experienced (which makes us better), but we lose a little of the novelty.   The limited length of the summer means that we do not get quite as many breaks as I would ideally like, so there are days that the summer can seem long and without time to rest.

 

In this way, being a counselor is a LOT like being a parent. You need to be present, responsible and loving even when you are tired. You do not get many meaningful breaks.

 

So as the summer progresses, we become wiser, but also a little tired.

 

Then the last week rolls around. Suddenly, no one thinks that the summer is long any more. Instead, it seems precious and short. Each counselor realizes that the campers and co-counselors that they love will be gone on August 12 and none will come back in their place.

 

So even counselors that have been here all summer suddenly find themselves rejuvenated with a combination of excitement and nostalgia.

 

I know I posted this picture of Dodger Ma’am earlier, but I put it up again because it captures how many of us feel. All of us are a little like this hound – happily savoring the last moments with your children with a slight sense of loss around the corner.

 

See you tomorrow!

 

Steve Sir