The bright sunshine and blue skies continue to dominate the long-range weather forecast, and we are taking full advantage of everything mother nature provides. We had a leisurely start to our morning, which included a later reveille and a morning of organized free play. Campers and counselors made their way to the Art Center to start to work on bunk plaques. The waterfront was open, giving our sailors and water skiers the opportunity to get on the lake. Everyone seemed to appreciate a more relaxed pace and a slower start to our day.
After lunch, we had our weekly nurse’s inspection, when every child visits our Health Center for a physical and emotional health assessment, and our boys are in great shape. I think back to the first week of camp when we all came together after this unprecedented time in our lives. So many of our boys didn’t have the stamina to run up and down a soccer field or play in an organized basketball game. The combination of online learning and our boys’ sedentary lifestyle created physical and emotional stress for a number of our campers as they put forth their best effort to make connections with their peers. We are in a far healthier place today than I could ever have imagined, and I continue to be amazed at our boys’ resiliency.
This is normally the week when our Senior campers are out on big trips. Having them in camp has created an energy and enthusiasm that is spreading through all age divisions. Our Senior boys played the semi-final games of their league competition. The teams with higher standings in each bracket are allowed to select the sport that they will play against their lower-cede rivals. In a number of games, our lower-ceded teams surprised their rivals with an unexpected upset and advanced to the next round of the tournament.
We’re at a time during the summer when we would normally have a lull before ramping up for our Olympics and our final week of camp. However, this summer we’ve been able to maintain a greater level of interest in our program and enthusiasm among our campers. As I watched our boys interacting with one another and competing in sports competitions throughout the day, I observed a number of our campers who came into camp feeling great emotional stress. This summer has given these boys a healthy balance of physical and emotional stimulation.
We continue to mix in a healthy blend of unexpected activities to change up our routine. After witnessing our staff enjoy karaoke night last evening, we decided to create an impromptu karaoke night during dinner. As the meal was being served, we had a few counselors make their way to the mic, which startled our campers. Within minutes our boys were lined up, waiting for their turn and loving the limelight. We turned an average meal into an awesome concert. In a summer when we’ve learned that less is more and when the fun is generated from within, we are confident that our boys will continue to thrive at camp.
