When you are getting rained on, little details don’t matter – you think a lot more about attitude. For the arrivals on on opening day, it was pouring and everything – down to my cabin list – was soaked. It didn’t really matter. Who needs waterproof paper? I’ m more interested in a water-proof attitude. And that’s what I saw on the first day throughout Timberlake.
After games, we had our first meal together – lots and lots of spaghetti with meat sauce, green beans and garlic bread. The gluten free and vegan options, including garlic bread, were also delicious.
We think a lot about our First Lodgers on the first day. Camp is new to many of them and they are a pretty excitable bunch. I am glad they are. They are getting the idea that this is a fun place, where we teach with skits and songs, cheer loudly, and are quite determined to enjoy ourselves from the get-go. They also managed, with the help of Silent Coyote, to get quiet in 1.4 seconds and sing Bowie’s “Space Oddessy” quite tunefully. And this was before cabin contracts.
A cabin contract is very different than a set of rules – it’s an agreement of the whole group on how they would like to be treated and treat each other. As I walked the cabin area, I quietly observed cabins of kids gathered around and heard comments like “so, if we are sharing, we agree to share with everyone, not just a few people in the cabin.” And, “If someone is doing something that’s not OK with you, you give them ‘The Eye’ to let them know that’s not OK. Let’s all practice ‘The Eye'” (I wish I had been standing close enough to see that!). When difficulties arise in the cabin, the group can refer back to the cabin contract to see if their behavior matches what they talked about the first night.
The next morning, we were up bright and early to a sunny day. This group sings with SPIRIT and they totally squashed “Quest For Spinach”, “Country Roads” and “Ghost Riders in The Sky”. After Silent Meeting, we had a variety of activities – rock climbing, slack line, shelf construction, long distance swim, kitchen help, swim lessons, animal care, primitive shelter construction, beginning a giant arch for our council fire area and more.
We also had Trips Skits for all campers, and ended the day with an all camp game of “Kingdoms”.
As I type, we’ve had no sign of rain and are appreciative and are making the most of a sunny day.
This group is already shaping up to be a fantastic group, ready to make the most out of their time here.
I have posted pictures that current parents can access by going to the Timberlake section of the F&W webpage and entering the password we sent you. Enjoy!