Free to be Yourself
Think of a place where you feel the most like “you.”
For some, they can be most like themselves around their friends at school, or their family at home. For others, they feel a freedom to be themselves when doing a specific activity, like performing on stage, riding a bike down a trail, or exploring nature on a hike. We’re overjoyed that many boys have found their place here at Falling Creek, and feel free to be themselves while at camp.
Yesterday at Morning Watch, one of our first time counselors, Kevin, shared his thoughts. “I was never a camper here, and this is my first year as a counselor,” he began. “I was unsure if I could do it at first, but with the help of my fellow staff and my cabin of campers, I found that by just being myself, I have what it takes.” At the mention of his cabin, all his campers waved and “raised the roof” from their bench, silently cheering him on as he led Morning Watch for the first time.
Kevin’s experience is another example of how everyone at camp is here to support each other and build up confidence. He has been able to embrace his unique strengths as a counselor during his first summer so far, and his campers love him, just for being himself.
As we walked to breakfast, another counselor Shane was setting his table while wearing a fleece tiger onesie. He chose this outfit for no particular reason, other than it was just fun!
At camp, if you’re wearing a tiger onesie to breakfast, no one looks at you weird. Camp is a place where everyone can be themselves, no matter how silly they feel like being. For boys of all ages, this can be a breath of fresh air, away from societal pressures they might be feeling in school or sports back home. They can see their counselor and mentor letting loose and being silly, or being more thoughtful and reserved, and they know that they’re free to be themselves too.
Since it’s Saturday, we’ll be enjoying an extra hour of sleep today before breakfast. In the morning, we’ll have tournaments and fun challenges. Some of these will be matches of ongoing tournaments, like the long time “Camper-Counselor Tennis Tournament,” or the chess tournament. Others will be shorter brackets just for fun today, like foosball, cornhole, flag football, basketball, archery, or riflery. In the afternoon, we’ll be playing an all-camp-game, which will be a surprise until it’s announced! Whatever the game will be though, it’s sure to be one where boys can let loose to run wild around camp, free to be themselves.
All boys are welcome at Falling Creek, and we hope that they feel free to be their truest selves while they’re here on the mountain. We’re looking forward to a great weekend together!