Counselors Have Parents, Too

July 15, 2024

So, what does it take to run an ice cream party, show a championship soccer game on live TV and supervise a free swim – all at the same time?  Loads of dependable staff is the answer, which is on full display in my photo selections just posted.

The ticket of admission to the ice cream event was a letter home, and no one, but no one, could ever hope to pull one past Klaus, who stared down every customer in turn. The treats were served in the Great Room so that the Dining Room, fully darkened, could be converted into a theater for showing the game.

Nonetheless, the main attraction for me was yet another gorgeous afternoon on the lake.  There was a mild northerly breeze. Tubers and skiers went out simultaneously as two power boats were employed and everyone had time to take at least one plunge into the soothing waters of Mother Tarleton. This blogger included.

After dinner – consult your Spanish dictionary to find out what food was served – both Sara and I headed in the same general direction in search of good photo ops.  Mat Ball is such an attractive haunt as loads of boys participate in an area that is really pretty at that hour of any sunny evening. It is hard to say “Enough of Mat Ball for this session.”

Everywhere I visited I found counselors happily engaging the troops. “I’ll bet their families search the photo albums, too,” I said to myself. Whereupon I had my theme for today’s report.

The “lowers” were having touch football games and all eight teams enjoyed donning those really neat Kingswood jerseys. Counselors did the quarterbacking, of course, and I was left thinking that perhaps a few CIT’s or Guides might have come in handy for a couple of those squads. But, like everything else we do, just being there is half the fun and the games all had very healthy vibes.

The breezes have turned southerly today as I compose these sentences. It is the last week of clinics for most of the campers, who are four-week patrons, and one of the main topics at camp meeting yesterday was the value accruing to trying new things.

Rob Wiff and Klaus delivered some “easy to understand” notions on the thought of not being afraid to jump into the uncertainties of the unknown. “You might find what you are destined not to be so good at, but you might also discover hidden skills you never dreamed you had,” or something like that as I paraphrase.

I’m off to see how much truth there is to the above.