Having a Great Time!
We have had a couple of wonderful days here at camp. When you’re having a great time, things tend to speed up and go too fast. We held sign-ups this morning and after lunch so campers took this opportunity to do things they love to do and try some new activities as well. Several cabins were off program just spending time together, which is always a good thing to do. Camp was covered in activities today as groups went to the Rock, one went tubing down the French Broad, one went to Connestee Falls to swim, and others just played and spent time together at our usual sign ups. 
It was a fun day to go to the Farm to play and care for all the baby animals; those baby calves aren’t so small anymore. Soon they will be weaned from the bottle and turned out into the pasture on their own. No more coddling by campers and being bottle fed twice a day. It’s always interesting to see their reaction when they’re set free. They look puzzled at first and then they skip and jump once they realize they’ve received their freedom ticket. The piglets, baby goats, and chicks are also getting bigger. We all grow at camp in different ways developing new skills. From kayaking allows us to grow our confidence as we learn and practice skill and maneuvers, to weaving where we develop our creative skills. We develop better decision making abilities as we try to choose which activities to do each day, and there are so many activities to choose from.
Mountainside played a large game of Secret Agent this morning and participated in sign-ups this afternoon. They closed their day with dinner at the Hunt Farm across the road where they enjoyed a meal together and lots of games. It was a wonderful day to continue building their strong community. Did I mention community skills? They will learn which Adventure they will be going on tomorrow morning so there is anticipation and excitement in the air.
Riverside spent yesterday paddling the lower Green River and left for their paddling adventure this morning. They returned to the Green to work on ferrying, surfing, and having fun in a canoe. It takes a lot of teamwork and cooperative skills to paddle tandem in whitewater, communicate with your partner, and learn to encourage and support one another. They are off to the Nantahala River tomorrow! Young Leaders are leaving very early in the morning for their rafting trip to the Chattooga River.
Yesterday was Special Day and the theme was Disney. We had lots of fun at different stations including the lake, pool, making some arts and crafts, doing some initiative and games, and spending time with their cabin groups. The afternoon was more relaxed where campers could choose to watch a Disney movie in the lodge, play Thunderball and Nine Square, or swim at the pool. It’s always nice to have some down time after a full week of fun and activities at camp. We closed the day with our Sunday Service where quite a few campers shared their talents with us. The theme was Mountains and Valleys and the music, singing, and reflective time was a wonderful way to end our day.
Tonight’s evening program was put on by our Performing Arts Players and they performed in splendid fashion. The title of the play was “The Adventures of Ruby and Rumblebee”, a rhyming story written by their director, Bridie. The actors all memorized their lines and did a wonderful job receiving lots of applause and cheering at the end of the show! There’s much about camp that is hard to put into words and even pictures. There’s so much that goes in our camp world each day. Many times I will ask campers what they did that morning or afternoon and they can’t remember. Their brains are full and so are their camp lives. They certainly fill our lives.
