Camp Life (Traditions)

Last night we had a quiet EP, a nice change of pace from the very active and crazy Team Meetings of the night before. Today we are having a “Challenge Day” of competition between the Odds and the Evens (the two teams of camp). It is probably a good time to let you know about the role of tradition at Greystone.

Camps love tradition… traditions bind the experiences of today with those of yesterday and gives confidence for the experiences of tomorrow. They provide a consistent thread that anyone who attends camp celebrates as a treasured memory. I vividly remember my Grandmother telling the Opening Vespers story of light and love, my mother leading Council Fires, my father leading Breakfast Club. I loved Challenge Day as a counselor at Greystone, also a big fan of Water Sports Day. Such memories are shared when Greystone Girls get together many years after their summer at camp. They are precious and wonderful.

Many traditions are quiet, Opening Vespers is a great example. We gather in the pavilion in absolute silence (as much as possible at least) as we sing quiet Praise Songs. Everyone wears “whites” (the “uniform” of many traditional programs at Greystone) and enter into the spirit of the evening. We let the girls know how special these quiet moments are IF the girls will make them special. A group of almost 500 young girls listening to old stories in absolute silence, singing quietly, and lighting their candles in love is absolutely amazing to see. Such quiet moments catch us off guard. The girls are surprised to find that they are touched by a program that manyu did not think would be “fun”.

Other traditions are rowdy and Challenge Day is a great example of such an occasion. We show team spirit in our classes with good natured competition between the Greens and the Gold teams. We dress up in Green or Gold outfits, yell loudly from Breakfast to Lunch, and have a blast. At lunch the winner of the morning’s competition is announced (the points added to the summer total, final team winner is announced at banquet) and we collapse into our cots for a nap. Good fun!

Camp is a wonderful place. Thank you for making unbroken tradition possible for so many generations. It is a remarkable “thread” that your girls will cherish.