Hump Day

The “real world” is very different from the “bubble” of camp. The counselors have been in this “bubble” for two months now and our memories of the “real world” are nostalgic. We remember Wednesday as that middle of the week turning point, a turning from a long week of classes and work to a short break of fun called the week end. At school, Wednesday assumes an emotional color that is beautiful in it’s own way… at camp: EVERY DAY is the weekend!

When one’s job is to simply contribute to a community of love, “work” is a relative term. We are having a blast and getting paid for it, not a normal definition of “work” in most people’s dictionary. At the same time, the days are very long and we have been “playing” for months on end. We find ourselves day dreaming of life apart from camp… then snap back to the moment.

The fact is, there is joy in every circumstance; we just have to discover it. Camp trains us in this skill, it is called “The Great Day” attitude: every day can be a Great Day if we decide to make it so. Camp encourages every person (camper and counselor alike) to be the captain of her own emotional ship. To make a life choice to rise above circumstances and not let “feelings” determine our attitude.

For instance: today is a rainy day. We awoke to overcast skies, mist on the mountains, and a light drizzle falling on the trees. For camper and counselor alike, rain can be a fun and exciting climate for camp. The trick is deciding to make it so. At Greystone, we have fun in the rain. We have been having fun in the rain all summer long, and it has been this way for 94 years! We know how delightful it is to stomp in puddles, to make mud pies, to roll down a hill of wet grass, to catch a foam ball that is soaked in water, to swim in the rain, to blob in the rain, juggle, jump rope, throw frisbees, kick balls, ride horses… EVERYTHING.

The fact is, rain days often become the favorite days of the summer for both camper and counselor alike. Life is like this: rain (figurative and literal) is not a bad thing. Such life lessons are golden when the girls go home. You will find that they have these skills and can draw on those skills at will. Encourage them to rise above their feelings: to have a Great day Every Day!

Breakfast Club today focused on the secret of Greystone (unselfishness) and how this secret makes you grow socially. Think about it… when we are unselfish in our friendships, we are the kind of friend that every one wants to have. We encouraged the girls to notice the quiet, sad, alone girls in their classes… to reach out to that person BECAUSE that person looks like they need a friend. If we were to always be more interested in the feelings of those around us, what a better world it would be. At camp… the better world exists. This fact of Love Lived in close community is what makes camp good.

When you write your girls, encourage them to reach out to other campers and to make lots of new friends. They are becoming very good at this life skill.

Last night’s EP was fantastic. I took my camera to the show and shot about 1,200 pictures. My goal was to get at least one photo of every camper that was on stage and I think that I succeeded. The camera is a good one (Nikon D3s), the lens last night was my new for this year favorite toy (a 400mm, 2.8G) and is perfect for low light situations. No need to go through all of the photos, just scan to your tentalow… I will try to do the same thing tonight.

I take the photos to “prove” the magic of camp. We see the girls having a blast all day long. Their faces reflect a joy that is completely unselfconscious and a delight to see. I try to capture the complexity of the experience with photos, but it is an impossible job. When I retire, I will focus all my energy on getting better photographs from the summer. Candid shots do it best… there are a lot of “duds” in such a technique, but some really wonderful shots as well.

You might be wondering how to keep up with the photographs… well, it may be impossible. I can do it if I give myself a solid 30 minutes every day… I do so by quickly scanning pages of 48 photos in every album, not enlarging any shots initially but marking any possible favorites for later inspection. I then look at my “favorites” folder and delete those shots that don’t meet expectations. We hope to get multiple shots of your camper every day. If you don’t see many pictures, email your camper today and encourage her to get her picture taken! We have photographers taking pictures all day long and the girls see them everywhere. All they have to do is ask and we will take a ton of pictures!

Breakfast was scrambled eggs, sausage, and grits. We also enjoyed a HUGE fruit bar again. I was shocked at the number of hard boiled eggs the girls at this session are eating. Some girls had three eggs on their plate! The steel cut oatmeal is a huge hit at this session… we put out a giant pot of hot oatmeal every morning and it is almost gone by the end of the meal. Frankly, our breakfast at camp is probably better than any of us will eat for the rest of the year. I am now a big fan of watermelon, blueberries, and Greek Yogurt bowls. This is an amazing way to start the day!

Lunch will be BLT’s (served with Kettle Chips, fresh baked bread, thick cut bacon, and organic heirloom tomatoes that were grown just 5 minutes from camp and picked yesterday). Dinner is Chicken Broccoli and Rice Casserole (a camp favorite). EP is the Cabin and Bungalow Lip Synch’s… should be really fun!

Thank you for reading.

Jimboy

THE JOKE: A Texas millionaire threw a big party with a HUGE prize offered to the man who would prove himself to be the bravest cow poke in the land. The millionaire would give the winner of the contest his choice of prizes:

• A 5,000 acre ranch, complete with 1,000 head of prize winning Long Horns
• A 1,000 acre oil field, with 10 producing oil wells valued at $10 Million
• The hand of the Millionaire’s beautiful daughter in marriage

All of Texas turned out to see the bravest men in the land compete for this wonderful prize. The crowd gathered around a huge 100 foot long pit that was filled with alligators, sharks, snakes, and bears. The Millionaire said that the man that jumped in that pit and emerged on the other side would win the prize. Nobody moved for a full minute, then a single cowboy jumped into the pit with a yell. He quite literally ran on top of the water, dancing across the heads of the gators and sharks and emerged unscathed on the other side. The millionaire asked if he wanted the oil wells… NOPE! Did he want the cattle… NOPE! So he wanted the hand of his lovely daughter in marriage… NOPE! “Well, what is it that you want?” asked the millionaire. “I just want the name of that feller that pushed me in the pit!” exclaimed the cowboy!