Greetings from Hilltop. Second Session has begun in fine form. All campers are here safely. There’s a fantastic energy that’s settled over camp. Of course we have some nerves and homesickness, but the overall vibe is that kids are just thrilled to be here. Returners just can’t wait for camp to get going. New campers are already absorbing information like sponges, eager to fully embrace this place. We’re off to a great start.
A few hours ago, the boats carrying most of the campers pulled into Four Winds Bay, greeted by cheers from the counselors and the campers who had been dropped off by their parents. Campers ran up the hill to meet their counselors and cabinmates. Once everyone in cabin or tent had arrived, the group went to the cabin or tent to get settled and organized. About an hour later, at flags, each cabin and tent introduced themselves with a short skit, and we lowered the flags together for the first time as a Second Session community. We had a great spaghetti dinner, and then all met on the stairs to sing some songs, share some announcements, and celebrate the fact that our community has people here in their first summer up to their fourteenth, and represents 24 states and 16 countries. Afterwards, campers and counselors went back to cabins and tents to unpack, and as I write this, they’re starting to wind down towards bed.
Tomorrow, we’ll have Rotation Day, in which we take care of a bunch of necessary tasks to get the session going (things like selecting classes, visiting the nurse, taking the swim test, having cabin photos made, and exchanging uniforms that don’t fit), as well as getting further oriented to Camp, playing games, and getting to know each other. For Evening Activity, we’ll play a great game called Biffer Medic. It’s an elaborate game of tag, in which some of the counselors sit in a giant circle around the sports field, and campers run around the field attempting to match clues to those counselor while avoiding Biffers (counselors armed with a sock full of flour). If they do get Biffed, they’re frozen until a Medic (still more counselors) can assign them a zany task to get unfrozen. It’s good fun. Starting on Wednesday, we’ll begin activities, and Camp will be in full swing.
As Camp gets going, I’m sure you’re wondering about how you can check in on your camper. The first, and best way is the good old fashioned letter. The dying art of letter writing is alive and well in the summer at Four Winds. The tactile nature of it, the delay between sending a letter and receiving a response, and the fact that these letters can be saved as mementos for decades all make letter writing a key part of the camp experience. In this age of instant gratification, delay is actually a rarity to be valued, and we certainly value it here. Secondly, I’ll be posting here once a week, on Sundays, and tweeting daily. You don’t need to join Twitter to get the updates if you don’t want to. Just go to twitter.com/fourwindscamp and you can read them there. If you’d like the tweets sent to your phone, you can text the phrase ‘follow fourwindscamp’ to the number 40404 in the US, and you’ll get all the updates via text message. Finally, we’re happy to check in your camper and get back to you with an update. Just call us in the office, and the team here will do a check and get back to you.
Finally, a word about homesickness. First of all, we wish they’d change the word. It’s not a virus. It’s a completely normal feeling that all people feel to some degree or another when they’re away from home. For kids, the feelings are relatively new, and so often more intense than we experience them as adults. Still, it’s an age appropriate challenge for camp age children. When they are able to overcome those feelings, it follows that they can overcome other things too. They feel capable and independent. It’s a huge gift. If you’re worried that your child might homesick at Camp, I highly recommend that you pick up the book Homesick and Happy, by the psychologist Michael Thompson. It will be a great guide for you as you follow your child’s journey at a distance. We’ll call you if your camper is persistently homesick, but if you get a homesick letter, don’t hesitate to call us. Most of the time, we’re already aware of the situation and the feelings have passed in the time it’s taken the letter to get to you. Occasionally, the camper has not shared his or her homesickness with anyone here, and your calling is the thing that can prompt us to get the camper the help they need.
Thank you for sharing your children with us this month. They’re embarking on an a great adventure, and we’re going to have a great time. I can’t wait.