It is raining now.  [Note: it is actually hard to show rain using a picture, so please forgive this weak photographic effort.]

When we attend camp conferences, there are inevitably sessions on “Rainy Day Activities”.   For camps in the northeast, they will experience summers with 8+ consecutive days of rain, so having a full array of rainy-day distractions is an operational imperative. They often ask me, “What do you do at Camp Champions when it rains?”

“If there is no lightning, we do outside, stare up and wonder why the sky is crying.” Rain is rare in the summer and we appreciate the variety that it brings. It is also nice to have everything cooling.

As I watched the campers in the Fillin Station (our dining hall) and listened to the rain, I felt comfort and contentment.

The last moments of the summer are before us.

We spend 40 weeks each year preparing for two weeks of orientation and ten weeks of camp. These days are precious to us.

I, however, will admit that the summer sometimes seems longer than I would like. The schedule of camp is truly demanding – the days start before 7 and typically end (for me at least) after 10. Susie Ma’am and I have had three “days off” that were more like one and a half. We would also go to a movie once a week. But we still find ourselves intertwined with all the wonderful lives here.

If I could waive a magic wand, I would provide us with a few 3-4 day breaks in the summer to provide a respite, but that would mean losing days with our camp community – something that we would not want to do.

Instead, we simply take a deep breath and plunge into the camp schedule and strive to appreciate every day.

So the summer is demanding and we get tired at times.

But not this week.

When I run, I always get a boost of energy when I know the run is almost over. This final week of camp has the exact same effect. Tired or not, we know that this is the last days of the summer. It is time to savor and appreciate.

We have saved some activities for this week that do not happen any other time of the summer. We will have torchlight in the pool. Tonight, Trojan-Spartan initiation will be co-ed. We will come together tomorrow night for an all-camp Vespers. This variety will assure that everyone is excited to be here this final week.

I know that everyone will approach each day with excitement and a touch of sentimentality. Tomorrow with be the “last” Sunday, Wednesday will be our last dance.

If your children are here right now, they are a lucky group (as are we to be with them)!

Steve Sir