Living at the Lake

That’s what we’ve been doing these days— really enjoying the Rockbrook lake. Even here in the mountains, the high temperatures have been knocking on 90 by the afternoon making everything at the lake all that more attractive. All day long, in fact, there have been campers and counselors splashing around, making up goofy jumps from the diving board, or just floating around on a tube. The kayakers have been happily getting wet as they practice their rolls, and the canoers, after paddling around a bit, didn’t hesitate to flip into the water. It’s great fun, by the way, to then try to stand up on the bottom of the canoe as it floats upside down. During the free swim periods, the water slide added even more excitement as girls climbed the 30-foot tower and slid (screaming!) down to plunge into the cool water. Classic summer fun!

Today was a day of regular, in-camp activities for everyone, but as I watched the girls confidently go from activity to activity, dash to the dining hall for meals after hearing the bell, check their mailboxes after lunch, and decide how to spend their free time, I thought about how great it is to see them being so independent. After this short week, this place is infused with focused energy, with self-directed ideas about what to do next, where to go and (easily) whom do be with. That’s really neat because it means the girls are making all these decisions on their own and learning to trust themselves as they navigate all the options. Of course, around every corner we’ve got caring adults trained to guide and encourage this kind of independence, and the choices available (the activities, people, and general environment) are carefully selected to be safe and positive, but all of this makes camp a perfect place for girls to grow more self-confident and independent. It’s clear here at camp, and I suspect you’ll notice it back at home too.

Today for lunch our awesome kitchen crew, led by Eulogia, hit a home run. It was a taco fiesta with fresh, secretly spiced, ground beef, black beans, Mexican rice, diced tomatoes, homemade guacamole, cheese and salsa. Each table had a plate of taco shells and bowls with all the different ingredients. And the shells kept on coming. One camper yelled proudly, “this is my eighth one!” The peanut butter and jelly station and the salad bars saw some action, but not much really.

The evening program tonight was the return of a special all-camp event hosted by our old friend Bill Grimsley, Game Show Mania. Using his podiums and scoring system, Bill put on a funny question and answer game that involved groups of campers, but also kept the whole audience involved in the show. After randomly selecting contestants, who then represented their cabins, he played sound bites and asked questions about pop music, movies and TV shows, but also about Rockbrook trivia. Bill was particularly good at making sure all of the contestants scored some points, not leaving anyone out. Prizes, like a giant red, white and blue cookie, went to cabin groups, and at times when the panelists were stumped and the audience knew an answer, the whole crowd was awarded a sweet treat.  The audience of campers was really into the game, cheering on their friends.  This was especially true during the staff round as the campers got to root for their favorite counselor and see them come up with some pretty funny answers.  With costumes and silly antics part of the mix, it was even better.