Trying New Things
It’s not every day you get to hammer steel at the forge - unless it’s camp!
It doesn’t matter if you’re a first time camper or a multi-year counselor, trying new things is never easy. Routines are comfortable, familiar, and convenient. It’s nice to have a schedule and a set of daily rituals, so it’s easy to fall into habits. After all, what if you try something new and you don’t like it? Nevermind if you try something and actually enjoy it; the future can seem too far away and abstract to justify forgoing your usual routine. However, at a certain point, routines start to impede growth. If you never try anything new, you’ll never push your comfort zones, explore new hobbies, or find out what you might be capable of.
Rich Walker is a psychologist at Winston-Salem State University who has been studying how “trying new things” can boost one’s happiness. TIME Magazine reported on how he studied people’s memories from 30,000 events, plus 500 diary entries, finding that people who have the most varied experiences also have a higher likelihood of reporting the most positive emotions (https://bit.ly/1NYFur1). It’s sometimes hard to add variety to your daily experiences when you’re at home, but at camp, we’re lucky enough to be able to choose from a seemingly endless array of activities each day. Besides the six daily activities you can choose to do, there are always plenty of trips going out or special signups happening that offer a huge selection of experiences.
You only have to try the blob once to find out how much fun it is!
For some boys, simply making the choice to come to camp is a new experience. It can be intimidating to leave home for three weeks and live with a group of boys you don’t know. In fact, the camp experience might even be a boy’s first time away from his parents for this long. It’s never easy trying new things, but pushing your comfort zone by living in a new setting can have huge positive effects. Trying something new like “sleepaway camp” can improve independence, confidence, communication with peers, flexibility, and more.
For other boys who have been coming to camp for years, there are always opportunities to branch out and try something new. Martin Z. has been coming to Falling Creek for four years now, but he didn’t go to the archery range until this summer. “I had never tried it before, but I just felt like seeing something new,” he told me today during a foosball match at Free Time. He said that he enjoyed archery, and it may have inspired him to try other new things at camp. This same summer, he was finally able to paddle the Lower Green for the first time. He has tried a few times before in past years, but bad luck has forced him to keep trying. “One time my paddling partner got sick, another time we paddled a different river because the water was too high, and another time I was sick!”, Martin explained. This past trip was finally his time though, and Martin said he was glad that he persisted in trying something new.
Shocktaw!
Aiken was also looking forward to trying something new with paddling: today he was heading on a combination “bi-venture” with biking and paddling! In this unique trip, boys would spend part of the time riding mountain bikes, and then they would swap gear and spend the rest of the time paddling whitewater. Aiken was excited because he had never done a trip with both experiences together. “There are only five other guys going I think, because you have to have done a Lower Green paddling trip and a camp ride or trip to DuPont with biking,” he told me. These guys had worked hard in both activities to be ready for the multi-sport trip, and it was a great way to have campers on the same trip who may ordinarily only focus on one of those activities. Aiken said he was more of a mountain biker, but was up for trying something new, and excited to have the chance to combine both activities.
Every day at camp is a chance to try new things. These new things could be big challenges like climbing on your first Looking Glass trip if you’re scared of heights, or sleeping outside in a tent for the first time and ignoring your fear of bugs. They could also be seemingly small things, like trying the pickled beets on the salad bar for the first time, or feeling comfortable enough to talk about your emotions with your cabin during Evening Embers. Trying new things at camp isn’t limited to the out-of-camp adventures either. For example, Simon got his cabin mate to teach him how to play the Magic trading card strategy game, something that he had never tried to learn back home. Jamie learned a new way to make paper airplanes, a silly but fun activity that was being offered during yesterday’s special signups. Brian and Croft were teaching boys how to slackline, helping them build up confidence to try and balance by themselves.
Brian helping boys find their balance while trying out slack lining
Jamie’s paper airplane is ready for take-off!
We may only have a few days left in camp, but each day comes with a thousand opportunities to try new things. We can’t wait to tell you about what kinds of activities we get to experience tomorrow!
More Highlights From This Monday:
- Four Birthdays today! Happy Birthday to Tate B. who turned 11, plus three of our incredible staff members: Chloe, Admezzy, and Coleman.
- Lochlan M. became Ranger in theater
- Jack R. earned Ranger in basketball
- John G. is now a Warrior in tennis, the highest level!
- We were treated to some delicious meals today: french toast, bacon, and grits for breakfast, cheese quesadillas, rice, and black beans for lunch, and “fish and chips” with steamed vegetables and vanilla cake for dessert.
- EP: tribal games! Cherokee on the turf field, Catawba on the landsports field, Tuscarora in the “thunder dungeon” for dodgeball, and Iroquois playing the famous Multi-ball game on the tennis courts
Jumping for the catch at flag football