Steady rain throughout the evening yesterday made for great sleeping weather, which is just what we needed at Takajo. Our campers and staff are a bit tired, but it is a good tired, earned from full days of activities and magnificent weather. We took the opportunity to slow down our pace and rest in camp.
It’s hard to believe that we just completed the third week of camp. For many reasons, it was probably the best week of camp. We had fun day trips departing for every age group, intercamp for all campers in Junior and Senior Camps who are interested in competing against other camps, and special events, such as the MLB Baseball All-Star Game and Independence Day fireworks that brought the camp community together.
We have a few boys who have caught a little “bug” and experienced an abnormal temperature for twenty-four hours, but we have nine amazing nurses and a brilliant physician in camp to care for all of the needs of our campers. I am always touched when I see bunkmates making their way to the Takajo Health Center to visit their buddy when he is feeling under the weather. As you would expect, we really don’t want a camper who is not feeling well to see his bunkmates and friends for fear of spreading germs.
A camper’s letter to his ill friend (Click to Enlarge)
Yesterday, when our nurses told one of our little guys that he could not come in to see his best friend and bunkmate, the little boy seemed perplexed. He appealed to the nurse’s sense of reason, but then left the building. Within twenty minutes, the boy came back to the health canter with a beautiful, handwritten note that he asked the nurse to share with his friend.
It is these little acts of kindness that mean so much to us in camp– the unprompted, spontaneous acts of goodwill and love that resonate throughout this community. The care and concern that we have for one another, through good times and bad, is everything that we try to promote throughout the summer. The forecast for the weekend is calling for bright sunshine and warmer temperatures, and the pace will pick up again tomorrow. Today, we took this opportunity to catch our collective breath, to slow down to the speed of life, and enjoy an overcast day in camp.
