Triumph

We have been here for 17 days but it doesn’t feel that way.

Time is a funny thing at camp. A day feels like a week because so much is crammed into every hour of every day. When was the last time that you scheduled 7 recreational activities in one day? When was the last time you enjoyed three big meals with a large group of friends? When was your last deep meaningful conversation or how many times do you find yourself asking forgiveness of a friend? How many live entertainment shows do you attend in a typical week?

Camp is densely packed with quality moments that are worthy of savoring… but savoring is not allowed, because we are quickly moving to the next quality moment… we collapse into bed wondering “was that just this morning”?

At the same time, time flies by. It feels like the girls arrived just yesterday, and thus the shock when we experience a production like “Annie”. It was the best June Camp production we have ever given. Hands Down! Allow me some observations:

Annie (played by Eliza Anderson) had perfect pitch. She sang and acted with the poise and confidence of a professional. Her voice quite literally brought tears to the Head Staff (especially Hillary (who cried three times during the production), but she tears up at anything).
The Orphans moved as a team in every scene. Their projection was top notch as well and their high spirited acting brought laughter and cheers from the audience.
Miss Hannigan (Mary Kate Morris) was the only lead who chose not to use a headset mic. The richness of her voice and her confidence in this very funny role made her a crowd favorite.
Grace Farrell (the assistant to Oliver Warbucks, played by Grace Allen) was perfect. The picture of poise and confidence, and a voice that is clear as a bell and always on cue.

It was a performance that shocked us all, for the Directors were all new to the job. Kaitlyn Kowalski (who as an old camper knew what a good show was all about but had never been the director of a production) directed the 43 campers and managed the 7 assistants to perfection. The whole production came together without a hitch. The ONLY thing we struggled with was sound… but this was the first time we used the 16 wireless headsets, the girls didn’t even know that they would be wired up until two days before the production! Some of the headsets unexpectedly turned off, but the actresses simply adapted to the surprise! What a show.

We celebrate each others moments of triumph, and such celebrations really define these last days of camp. Production Night, Play Production, Council Fire… these are moments of triumph that lift our spirits. To see the crowd of 100 plus campers swarming around the cast and crew last night was an inspiration.

Then the sunset!

You saw the rain pictures yesterday morning: well, the rain quickly moved out (gone by 11:00) and so did the clouds (by the end of the day). Just to the Southwest, high above the mountains, HUGE billowing clouds rose almost vertically into a deep blue sky. The clouds were colored a uniform pink from the sunset and since they were so high up in the sky the color lasted for almost 30 minutes. The girls got out of the pavilion and as they dashed off to crackers were stunned iby the beauty that surrounded them. Lightning bugs were caught by the dozens as groups of girls decided that they should make this moment linger. I should have taken pictures, but I didn’t want to miss a minute. Wow.

Today is a glorious sunny day. We will have a big Council Fire award night, followed by our Closing Vespers (we wear whites and light our candles around the flag pole… it is so beautiful). We love these end of camp traditions. They are very simple and very profound.

Breakfast was a new one… CREPES with a fresh blueberry compote. REALLY GOOD. Lunch is Parmesan Chicken Salad (zesty chicken tenders that have a crunchy cheese coating on Romaine Lettuce with Caesar dressing). Dinner is smoked brisket (we smoked it with Apple wood for 14 hours yesterday… it is very moist and a very enticing introduction to real NC BBQ).

Thank you again for your support and kind words. It is a pleasure.

Jimboy

PS THE JOKE: A rich man is told by an Angel that he can have one wish granted before he goes to heaven the next night. After consideration, the man asks if he can take something with him to Heaven and the angel says OK. The man sells everything he owns and buys a big Gold Brick, putting it in a backpack and taking it to bed. When the angel arrives, the man grabs the backpack and heads to the pearly gates where St. Peter asks what is in the bag and is surprised to see the gold brick. With a look of amazement, St Peter exclaims: “YOU BROUGHT PAVEMENT?”