During A Block, my curiosity got the better of me and I followed the boys into the woods for a Kingswood version of capture-the-flag that involves escaping the taggers (counselors and Guides) to find and “touch” the flag. “When did you invent Stealth?” I was asked at the organizational meeting and when 1998 was the given date, we all realized this was the 25th anniversary of this very popular game that draws “gaggles of boys.”
With storms scheduled for evening time (we don’t bother to use the word “forecast” any more,) we smartly used a windy afternoon when the lake was an option only for the highly certified campers to satisfy our perpetual pledge to play Stealth “irregardless” of the potential muddy conditions in the woods. It was not bad at all in most spots and a bright sun filtering through the boughs made for some easier spotting of the sneeker-uppers. Nevertheless, during my visit to one of the flag sites monitored by Skyler, who was counting the tags, gaggles of happy boys penetrated the defensive lines to touch the orange cushion. I did, too, as you can see from my photo album. Just trying to seem young.
Well, with that juvenile experience under my belt, I could have been forgiven for heading back to my cabin after dinner to watch the radar or do some other adult thing. But, when I saw Mat Ball on the sponsorship board, I was utterly sold on being there. I took some more video at this gaggled event and can be heard saying “I could watch this game all night long,” or something to that effect.
Mat Ball is difficult to describe but it is a version of kickball that allows runners to keep circling the bases until put out by being tagged with the ball. The ball gets “away” a lot in this zaniness, especially when it is kicked down the hill or over the top of one of the cabins. Boys, gaggles of them, just keep running in circles and come to a stop whenever the counselors regain control of the situation. “Twenty-four runners are on third base,” is one of my favorite refrains.
OK, the bell rang out of the blue at about 7:50 and the gaggle assembled for ice cream in the Dining Room. I was tempted to pull a third boyish move, but when I heard thunder in the distance I found it more prudent to head home and help the staff monitor the upcoming storms. They were not that bad and everyone was delighted when the showers paused long enough for everyone to get back up the hill safely and off to bed.