Fishing, Sing Song Day 3
A lot has happened in 24 hours of Camp. Last night we hiked over to the Initiation Pond (iPond) for fishing, s’mores, and a sing song. I got over to the iPond a little bit after the kids did, and when I showed up I recognized right away that it was going to be a great night for campers. All our counselors were engaged with campers, whether it was helping a camper catch their first fish, or throwing the football up on the lawn. For you former counselors, you know that Fishing is a big night to really get time with your campers. Counselors came through big time last night in getting campers in the flow of camp, especially our campers working through homesickness. All of our kids who have been experiencing homesickness were running around having fun. It probably helped too that we had a counselor match of chubby bunny (we don’t let campers do chubby bunny for safety precautions); kids were cheering on their favorite counselors.
As the sun set over the horizon, we all gathered around the campfire for our session’s first Sing Song. Sing Song is where all of camp gathers to sing fun and traditional songs, some we’ve been singing for 40+ years. Last night we sang You Are My Sunshine, When I First Came To This Land, Salty Dog, Wagon Wheel, Long Black Veil, Shelby County Breeze, Mandi’s Song, I Still Do, Summer, and the Camp Song. I was amazed at how well the campers knew the words. I could see many of our first-year campers seated up front just singing along. They sang loud and it was a lot of fun for me. I was reminded once again last night how timeless an activity Sing Song is. Back home, campers, especially teenagers, might be made fun of singing old folk songs. But at Camp, it’s normal, and campers are free to express themselves and sing to their heart’s delight. I’m already looking forward to the next sing song.
This morning we woke up to flag raising and surprised campers with Phantom’s Playday! Playday, as we call it, always starts by surprising the kids by the playing of “Chicken Train” and throwing them in the pool. This morning we had campers play name that tune over the PA. The fifth song was “Chicken Train”, and campers went running in all directions trying to escape their counselors. This morning girls camp dressed up silly and played their traditional games: Egg Toss, Pie in the Eye, Minnow Chase (in the pool), and Ice Water on the Counselor’s Back. Boys Camp played their game of Huawni Uprising, a big game of capture the flag in the woods. Boys camp will dress up in camo and go all out for this morning. They also eat ice-cold watermelon at halftime.
Today we’re continuing a full day of activities, and campers are signing up in droves for tonight’s Talent Show. We are loving this group of kids…we’ll keep you posted!
Also, thank you to all you parents posting on my blog. I’m enjoying, as I’m sure other parents are, your comments.
