Sleep Away Camp

I just spent a weekend with over 400 young people and the over 200 staff that support them at a camp in the Georgia mountains.  I was an observer for the most part, with a few opportunities to interact with the group.  My primary activity was actually participating in workshops and discovery sessions with fellow professionals and volunteers who are focused on youth engagement, at a conference that was held on site at this resident camp.

What an amazing experience! 

I never went to sleep away camp.  Sure, I went camping with scouts, and friends, went on extended stay field trips, and youth group conventions, and had plenty of sleepovers, but I never had the opportunity to attend a camp scenario like this.  I had friends that went away for weeks and months at a time, but I stayed close to home.  I have no regrets - I look back fondly on the summers of my youth - filled with day camps of all kinds - from music to sports to animals to scouts and so on.  And in between and throughout, my idle time was anything but, spent with friends, or even solo exploring trails on bicycles or on foot (I can't believe how far I used to travel on my own!), or reading in summer programs at the library, or crafting at home, heading to a museum or a show in the city, or sometimes, just simply doing nothing...which in summer time, especially in summer time is not always such a bad thing to do.  But I never went to sleep away camp.

My dad used to go every summer.  I didn't know it then, but I do now, when my grandmother repeats the conversation about how incredulous it is that I don't send my kids off  shortly after school ends, every summer of recent past.  He never pushed it for me; he may have mentioned it once or twice, but never recounted fond memories, or told me stories that would make me wonder.  Perhaps he didn't like his experience - that's what I have to surmise, otherwise, being the talker that he is, I'm sure I would have heard about it.  And I would assume, had he loved his experiences, he would have encouraged me to do the same.  I could be wrong on that too - he was a young dad, and maybe it just didn't occur to him.  Nevertheless, I never went to sleep away camp.

I've known kids who hated their experience.  I've known kids who liked it.  I've known people who loved it so much, they returned year after year to the same places, eventually becoming counselors, meeting significant others who become spouses, and then in turn, sending their children to the same places.  But I never went to sleep away camp.

Now that I've seen it, close up, live, immersively...I get it.  To see so many kids - in a broad age range - bonded together, sincerely enjoying their time and being able to express their joy through so many outlets, both physically and intellectually, is exhilarating.  To see so many kids - with such a wide range of personalities, physically embracing one another during a session of music, arms linked in solidarity, swaying in time with the songs they are singing, is moving and emotional.  To see so many kids - making connections with others from across the ocean and right next door, building memories to last a lifetime, developing relationships that may influence their lives forever is utterly profound. 

I kinda wish I went to sleep away camp.

I hope to give that gift to my children soon.