Friends that might usually choose their programs based solely on what the person who they sleep just a few feet away from is doing, or kids that would break-up with someone if it was important to their BFF for any reason, now will spend hours upon days on opposite sides of this camp tradition. Whether it’s Green and White, different countries, or themed groups, bunkmates are divided. As camps strive each day to build healthy communities inside of their cabins in the woods, working dutifully to create coalition and establish peace in these temporary homes, Color War often tests that process by making teams. Building harmony is a mantra at camp, and yet one of the most common similarities between many camps no matter where they are and what their tradition may be is the presence of something we call, “Color War.” A Color War by any other name such as Olympics, Maccabiah, or Tribal is still a Color War – an intensive, often multi-day activity that engages the entire community in battles both inane and profound – with intensity, excitement, and the antithetical splitting of camp friends between different sides of the war.Īlthough the tradition of Color War has come a long way since its creation (purportedly) at Schroon Lake Camp in 1916, including renaming, reframing, demystifying, and deconstructing some of the trappings to make it more effective and acceptable in today’s world, one common and consistent element can teach us a lesson. They do this with intention, with character, and with a devotion to whatever their unique mission and methods may be. But at the end of the summer when they reclaim their daughters and sons and assess whether sending them away for weeks to be cared for by strangers was actually a good idea, they just want to hear them say, “I made a friend.” Camps create the environment within which children that start as strangers become lifelong members of an extended family with bonds that are astoundingly strong. Of course, when families are looking for the right camp for their child, they consider the campus, the programs, the schedules, and many other facets. So, I turn back to camp – the ever-present surrealistic rock that I’ve leaned on for so many years – to find something, anything, to shake some sensibility from the trees swaying in the high winds of present-day challenges.Īt camp, we connect young people to each other. I just want to find solace where I can, to try to make some sense of all of this chaos. And though my home life and career have been rocked by COVID-19, I’m in no position to complain. When gunshots ring out in my neighborhood of West Philadelphia, I don’t immediately think they’re ripping through the chest of someone I know.
I’m just a person that was born too late to truly experience the impact of epic conflicts that America faced long ago, too white and privileged to understand what it’s like to live in fear all day. I’m not a philosopher nor a pundit, not an expert on the democratic process nor nearly the agent of social change and activism that many others may be. If only I didn’t turn on a device, try to go any place, or speak to anyone, I might not feel encumbered by the uncertainty and anger that seem to be inching closer and closer to me. I continue to look up to make sure that the sky hasn’t fallen and plea with others to see silver lining in the clouds. No matter the side that each American may feel that they’re on with regards to the recent presidential election, there’s something broken. In the last week, I’ve needed both the laughs and lessons of camp.Īs I write this, my current worldview is cast through two lenses, one made of my usual optimism and hopefulness, and the other that colors everything with unprecedented disharmony and polarization. And when I face challenges, there are few occasions that a lesson learned within the bubble of camp won’t provide valuable perspective. When I need to laugh, a story from countless summers spent in the woods without television can be counted on. Camp is where I figured out who I wanted to be as a kid, and camp is where I’ve been afforded the space and inspiration as an adult to try to get closer to that ideal. Aside from family and the Philadelphia 76ers, the institution in my life that has been the most constant and influential is summer camp.
0 kommentar(er)
