Terrific Trips

Let’s begin with breakfast, as we did this morning at 8:30am. Our Kitchen Manager and Head Chef, Rick, draws upon his 5 years of experience planning meals and cooking for Rockbrook (plus 9 years at other organizations) to surprise and delight us everyday with yummy meals. His goal is to provide healthy foods, made mostly from whole and natural ingredients (not pre-processed), that strike a balance between being “kid friendly” and “unfamiliar.” For example, this morning Rick started simply with hot scrambled eggs with yellow corn grits and fried country ham. But to mix it up a bit, Katie, our baker, brought out trays of homemade, freshly baked biscuits to go with the slightly sweet and spicy red-eye gravy Rick brewed (yes, it did have a little coffee in it!) as well. With orange juice, and a small bowl of fruit and yogurt from the breakfast bar, this was a complete— beyond complete —breakfast. And it was delicious! By the way, have you seen Rick in our video about the food at camp?

Camp kid eating a fresh muffin

You may have heard about the special snack we serve between the first and second activity periods each morning around 11am: freshly baked muffins. Katie tries to surprise us every day by alternating between traditional flavors like Lemon Poppy Seed or Pumpkin Chocolate Chip and more creative, one-of-a-kind recipes like Peach/Mango and Carrot/White Chocolate. It’s a big event to swing by the dining hall porch when the bell rings for “Muffin Break” and sample the day’s surprise flavor. Being able to catch up briefly with a friend before heading to a different activity, and to enjoy a soft, sweet muffin each day, is a wonderful Rockbrook moment we all love. When your girls return home in a couple of weeks, be sure to ask them what flavor of muffin was their favorite.

Camp horse named Hula Hoop

Here is one of the stars of the Rockbrook horseback riding program this summer. He’s Hula Hoop, an 18 year old Belgium Warmblood who comes to us from St. Andrews University and their Therapeutic Riding Program “Ride Like a Knight.” When he was younger, Hula was a top-ranked show horse competing in everything from Grand Prix to 3’6″ hunter shows. He’s won many top prizes, but for our girls, he’s a gentle, steady mount. Overall, we have 29 horses and ponies comprising the Rockbrook herd this summer. The girls are getting to know them in the stable club, grooming them and learning about other aspects of horse care, and then when it’s time to ride, friends with names like Hula, Lacy, Tony, Onyx, Gordon, or maybe Cool Beans are happy to oblige. Despite the rainy weather we’ve been having lately, Riding is still a popular activity at camp.

If you’ve looked at the map of Rockbrook, you’ve probably noticed that the French Broad River creates the western boundary of the camp. The French Broad begins in Rosman, NC when four creeks come together. From there, it travels more than 200 miles northeast and then west to Knoxville where it joins the Holston River to form the Tennessee River, which eventually flows into the Ohio River and the Mississippi. So, yes, you can launch a boat at Rockbrook and (after several miles of paddling!) come out in New Orleans.

Camp Girls Canoeing trip

This morning a group of Rockbrook girls set out in Rosman and paddled canoes 3 miles of that long journey. After pairing up and deciding who would paddle the bow and stern of the canoes, Emily reviewed for the group paddling strokes, cautioned everyone about avoiding trees along the edge of the river, and instructed them what to do if they tip over and end up in the water. Once underway, she also demonstrated how to cross from one side of the river to the other (“ferrying”) and how to stop in a calm area of water behind an obstacle (“catching an eddy”). As you can see from this photo, the weather was gorgeous and the girls spent the whole morning enjoying themselves on the water. Several of the girls commented that canoeing was their new favorite activity. It was that kind of perfect trip.

2 camp girls taking a ride down sliding rock

The entire Senior line, all 84 campers, took a different trip this evening. They loaded into buses and vans for a picnic in the Pisgah National Forest, a ride down Sliding Rock, and a cup or cone of their favorite flavor of Dolly’s ice cream. One highlight during the picnic was getting everyone to skip and play together in the grassy field. We must have played “I’m a Rockbrook Girl” for almost a half hour! At Sliding Rock, we found the water to be a little higher than usual (another indication of the wet weather these last weeks), but also a little colder too. That’s a big part of the fun though… the bone-chilling shock of icy water splashing up your back when you first sit down to slide. Plunging into the pool at the bottom and going under the water feels almost electric. It instantly evokes an urgent need to “get out of this water, NOW!” For some girls, this is fantastic fun, shivering, blue lips and all, while for others one trip down the rock is plenty. For everyone, this is the kind of mountain experience they look forward to at camp… likewise, for our stop at Dolly’s. This lovely ice cream stand, located at the entrance to the Pisgah Forest, serves more than 20 unique flavors of ice cream, combinations of ingredients really, named after each of the local summer camps. The Rockbrook flavor, for example, is called “Rockbrook Chocolate Illusion,” and is chocolate ice cream, fudge, brownie bits, with peanut butter cups. Every camp flavor is different, so it can take a while just to read the menu! You might think that after freezing ourselves in the water at Sliding Rock we wouldn’t be interested in ice cream, but this is, as one camper put it, “the best ice cream on earth!” With ice cream to top it off, this was another terrific trip.

Camp Girls eating ice cream at Dolly's Dairy bar

Down Right Fantastic

Dance counselors teaching girl

There’s a remarkable energy at camp right now, a current derived from almost constant action, powerful enthusiasm, smile-filled interactions, and boundless opportunity for fun. It’s an energy that has sparked to life in the context of camp— the different creative, adventure, and sports activities, the awesome food, and the beautiful wooded setting Rockbrook enjoys —but has its deepest source in what our staff members contribute to the daily lives of your girls. And that’s what’s so impressive! This summer’s staff, our cabin counselors and special activity instructors, are down right fantastic, easily the best bunch of friendly, genuinely caring young women we’ve ever assembled. Several hundred people applied to work at Rockbrook this summer, so Sofie, our staff Director, was able to be very picky and select only those applicants that shined.  And making the whole staff even better, these new hires joined a large group of veteran counselors (30% new and 70% returning overall). Combine all of this with the fact that these staff members now have (at least) 2 sessions of experience from earlier this summer to draw upon, and it’s simple to explain why this is such an outstanding bunch.

Girl aiming bow and arrow at archery camp activity

The campers are midway through their first set of activity selections that began on Monday. This means they have now mastered basic skills, are making progress on craft projects, and feeling more confident in their abilities. For example, the archers and marksmen are scoring hits closer to the center of their targets. The climbers are scaling more difficult routes up the Alpine Tower. The knitters are adding new colors to their woven cap projects. The kayakers are now comfortable performing a “wet exit.” There are smoother tennis (and teatherball) serves, bigger splashes from cannonballs off the lake diving board, and louder screams of delight flying by on the zip line. Each step, of course, only intensifies the satisfaction and fun of what we do everyday.

Girls Rafting Cheer
Girls Whitewater rafting rapid

For 75 campers and a dozen staff members, today was a day of big adventure because we went whitewater rafting on the Nantahala River. About half these began their trip Monday evening by spending the night at our outpost camp over near the river in Macon County. With their clothes, sleep bags, brushes (hair and tooth), and spays (bug and sunscreen) packed, and in some cases with pillows and stuffed animals tucked safely underarms, the girls enjoyed having dinner together and then sleeping in one of the three platform cabins at the outpost. In the morning, we met our raft guides and prepared for the trip by fitting helmets, PFDs, and paddles, learning about how to stay safe in whitewater, and the basic strokes for paddling our rafts. The trip down the river lasts 2 hours and is the perfect river for a young, beginner because it includes several named rapids but also plenty of calm stretches for splashing, singing, clapping “high-fives” with paddles, and even jumping in for a quick (very quick, given the temperature of the water) swim. Today the weather was ideal too— hot and sunny, to balance that cold water.

It’s hard to describe what it feels like on these rafting trips, but this photo helps. Take a look at the faces of these girls. They are having an absolute ball! They’re screaming, laughing hilariously, and being splashed and bounced around like never before. Part of the fun is just being in the raft together, but when suddenly you hit a rock and someone falls backwards into the raft (or out into the river!) with her feet sticking high in the air, it’s uproarious fun. Like all good outdoor adventure activities, whitewater rafting feels edgy, gets your heart pumping, but is controlled and safe in the end.

Girls Smile while rafting

Back at camp, one girl turned to me as she was getting off the bus and said, “Thank you for an awesome day. That was probably the most fun I’ve ever had.” Wow! That’s about as good as it gets! Thanks. I had fun too.

“I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately…”

Greetings from Rockbrook Camp. This is Chrissy, the Waterfront Supervisor, writing to tell you about our first full day of activities! It’s funny how quickly camp girls will trade in state-of-the-art technology for snail mail and century-old crafts once they arrive at Rockbrook. It only takes a deep breath of the fresh mountain air to reconnect to the essentials of camp life–beautiful mountains, strong friendships, and independence

Monday morning the rising bell rang at 8:00am, beckoning the girls to wake up and take advantage of a perfect first day of activities at Rockbrook. After a hearty breakfast of oatmeal, the girls were ready to seize the day. I even saw some girls wearing their swimsuits to breakfast, eager to jump in the lake! After the first two morning activities, First Free Swim saw what we call a perfect lake day–warm, gleaming sunshine and blue skies “smilin’ at me, nothing but blue skies at RBC.” The lake was quite popular this morning as the girls sought out a refreshing respite from the July sun.

After an exciting morning of trying new things, the girls were very appreciative of cheese quesadillas and homemade guacamole for lunch. Right on cue it seems, a refreshing bit of rain passed over us during lunch. It was enough to cool us down without dampening our spirits, and after a refreshing rest hour the girls were quick to jump to their afternoon activities. Luckily the sunshine held out for the rest of the afternoon, and the girls were comfortable being outside for the remainder of the day.

tiny girl paddling gear

At dinner we celebrated an American tradition of hamburgers, chips, and watermelon followed by a scrumptious bread pudding for dessert that did not last long! Rockbrook encourages healthy eating choices and independence through each girl creating her own meal, so our salad bar, vegan/vegetarian options, and peanut butter & jelly station supply additional dietary choices for the girls. Yet another way that we foster independence is through free times, such as Free Swims and Twilight. I saw many girls on the hill during Twilight this evening after dinner, playing tetherball, exploring the creeks, and chasing fairies through the gardens. Last, but certainly not least, the girls finished their days with Evening Programs in each line’s lodge. After receiving the intriguing theme of “National Enquirer” (exciting headlines to act out), they were off to their cabins coming up with creative skits, costumes included. Finally it was off to bed, after milk and cookies and the soothing Rockbrook prayer. Sweet dreams to our adventurous Rockbrook girls, and may they continue to seek out and overcome new challenges.

“I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately, to front only the essential facts of life, and see if I could not learn what it had to teach, and not, when I came to die, discover that I had not lived. I did not wish to live what was not life, living is so dear; nor did I wish to practice resignation, unless it was quite necessary. I wanted to live deep and suck out all the marrow of life.” –Henry David Thoreau

summer camp tetherball kids

Beginning the Bustle

Girls excited for camp

“I am so ready to bust out of this car!” That’s the way one girl put it when she arrived at camp this morning. “She’s been talking about Rockbrook non-stop for the last week,” one parent explained. And, “She woke up at 4am this morning,” said another. It’s true; some strikingly pent up excitement arrived (and was released!) at camp today as 155 campers opened our third session. Every session has excited campers arriving, but this seemed extraordinary. Perhaps, it’s because these girls have been waiting most of the summer for this moment, or they’ve been following along on the web site, or they simply know how much fun they’re about to have. Whatever the reason, these third session girls are pumped! All morning as everyone arrived, we heard squeals of camp friends reuniting, enthusiastic cheers from counselors greeting their campers, and maybe a few grunts as heavy trunks were hauled up the hill and down the lines to the cabins. The whole morning was a hustle and bustle with campers and their families moving in, girls playing group games in the Hillside Lodge, groups taking hikes to Rockbrook Falls, and new cabin mates making friendship bracelets together on the hill.  All this excitement and all this action made the morning really fun and festive.

Rick and his fantastic kitchen crew settled us down a bit with a yummy lunch of his homemade macaroni and cheese, steamed green beans, and fresh fruit salad… comfort food for the first meal. At the beginning of the meal, Sarah took a minute to explain where to find the vegetarian, gluten- and dairy-free options, the peanut butter and jelly station, cartons of milk to drink, and the two salad bars. During the meal, it took about 5 minutes for a song to break out, the first of many that will erupt at every meal in the dining hall. With all the camp songs being sung around here, it’s no surprise that girls will find themselves singing them at other times throughout the year.  They’ll be eating lunch at school and suddenly have an urge to yell out “Rockbrook request! The Coconut Song!”

Girl swimming at summer camp

With bright sun shining overhead, we broke into age groups for the afternoon rotating between camp tours of the different activity areas, cabin and line meetings, and swimming demonstrations. We ask everyone at camp who wants to swim (or go whitewater rafting, canoeing or kayaking) to demonstrate their ability in our lake.  It is a mountain-stream-fed lake which, very different from a warm, clear swimming pool, is quite cold and often a little intimidating for young girls used to shallow water. Consequently, it can be a shock to jump in, swim out 50 feet, back another 50 feet using a back stroke, and tread water for 1 full minute, as our demonstration/test requires. For even experienced swimmers, it takes a solid effort to overcome the cold without a struggle. Still, you would be proud of your girls for they all did very well, with only 3 needing to retake the test later. If someone struggles to complete the full swimming demonstration, we still encourage her to come and enjoy the lake, but we require that she wear a life vest and stay in the shallow area. To keep everyone safe at the waterfront, our American Camp Association accreditation requires these kinds of proven protocols.

Camp Counselor Skit with costumes

Later in the afternoon, the whole camp assembled in the gym to learn more about the different activities offered this session by enjoying a program of skits performed by the activity instructors. This is a chance for the campers to meet the different instructors and hear more about what goes on at strange sounding activities like the “Alpine Tower, “Curosty,” “WHOA,” for example (Climbing, Fiber Arts, and Adventure/hiking). For the counselors, it’s a chance to dress up, maybe sing and dance a little, and show everyone what fun it is just to be at camp. In addition to these skits, we sang activity songs, line (age group) songs, and did a whole lot of cheering to make this a fun hour.

We’re just getting started. The bustle is just beginning, but I can already tell we’ve got excellent counselors and super excited campers ready to make this a great session. Stay tuned!

Fondness and Caring

Camp Friends girls cute


At breakfast this morning, which was our last gathering of the session, Sarah stood to deliver a few last minute announcements and reminders. This is typical, but as she looked out at all the girls and their counselors this morning, she was suddenly overcome with emotion, got a little choked up, and had to pause briefly for a breath. During that moment, there wasn’t a peep from any of us, all 275 of us, because we too felt it, a strong sense that we have something very special here. We’ve forged a strong connection with each other, a fondness and caring that feels so good. It was a sweet moment showing that for everyone, not only the campers, but the counselors and directors too, Rockbrook is a wonderful, kind community. It’s a remarkable place, magical in so many ways, where we can share these great feelings of affection.

We’ve had an extraordinary session. So, thank you! Thank you for being a part of the Rockbrook community and for sharing your girls. We will miss them. We’ll all miss each other. And when next summer returns, we’ll all celebrate again.

It’s a Little Upsetting

Silly Sad Kids

Ah, don’t be so sad! This is the last full day of our second session and that can be a little upsetting, but it’s not because these girls are leaving camp and can’t continue to have the kind of silly fun we’ve been having over these last few weeks.  It’s not because they can’t go whitewater rafting, rock climbing, or zip lining any longer. It’s not because they can’t jump in the lake, shoot a rifle or play teatherball, and it’s not because they can’t weave or throw another pot on the wheel. Sure, all the fun things we do at camp are ending for this summer, but what’s really at the source of everyone’s melancholy is having to leave our friends, our new, extraordinarily close camp friends. It’s leaving the people (not the camp activities, cabins or muffins) that’s so difficult. Here at Rockbrook, as we’ve relaxed into our true selves and found caring people despite it all, as we’ve shared so many full experiences together, we’ve grown to appreciate camp as a special place because of its people. So that’s the problem; we have to say goodbye tomorrow to the people at camp. As they sing “I don’t wanna go home” in one of the camp songs, I think they mean “I don’t want to leave these great folks.” It’s how we feel when we’re together; that’s what’s ending with camp, and that’s kinda sad.

Jungle Book Kids Play Cast members

Knowing this is the case, we do what we can to make the most of these last hours of camp by sticking together. For example, this afternoon, we all gathered in the gym to enjoy the performance of this session’s musical, The Jungle Book. For some girls, those who had auditioned to be a part of the play, it was time for all the rehearsing— memorizing lines, choreography, and songs —the costumes, and set decorations to be coordinated and presented. For everyone else, it was time to cheer and applaud the hard work and talents displayed.  With the whole camp gathered, including a few parents of the cast members, we could sing, clap and celebrate, more enthusiastically than ever.

Camp Spirit fire indoors

As has been our tradition for more than 90 years, we closed this final night of camp with a campfire we call the “Spirit Fire.” But for the first time in recent memory, we held the program in the gym because of rain. As is usual, the entire camp dressed in their red and white uniforms, but this time circled around a fire built in a low insulated vessel. So as the rain fell outside, everyone stayed dry and comfortable in their crazy creek chairs singing the traditional Spirit Fire songs and listening to different campers and counselors speak about their experience at camp. By the end of the program, the rain had stopped allowing Sarah and the other directors to light a small white candle for each person, and all of us to circle around the lake for the final few quiet songs. This was another all-camp event that conjured a few tears, and many, many hugs. Like so much at camp, it was charged with emotional energy born from the amazing relationships between your girls and all the wonderful people they’ve met. It’s an astounding thing, and a true privilege to be part of it.

A Spies Banquet

Kid holding her riflery target

We’re approaching the end of our main session of camp, as today was the last day of regular activity periods. With the sun drying everything (“Hot and sunny without a drop of rain,” describes the weather.), and the campers feeling fully relaxed after all these weeks together, there seemed to be an extraordinary buzz of activity today. Down at the riflery and archery ranges, the girls have been preparing to challenge the boys at Camp Carolina in a shooting tournament scheduled for tomorrow. The shooting instructors select 3 girls from each age group to join the team that travels to Camp Carolina for the friendly match, so everyone interested was eager to practice before the event. Likewise, the tennis instructors were coaching the girls who would go to play a tennis match against the team of boys. For many of these girls, they look forward to just going on the trip, regardless of whether or not they win.

Bright tie dyes

We saw all kinds of completed craft projects appear today also. Ceramics pieces emerged from the kilns shiny and colorful. Tie-dye t-shirts were unfurled to the delight of their makers. Weavings were cut from the looms, and their loose ends tied, in Cursoty. The individual months for decorated paper calendars were finally assembled. Candles received their last few dips in the colored wax. Final beads were strung on many-stranded bracelets and necklaces. The finishing stitches were added to knitted hats, and needlepoint designs. When you see all these wonderful creations, I’m sure you’ll be impressed.

Lake Party Girls

Today’s sunny weather became the inspiration for a lake party before lunch. With all the lifeguards on duty, we opened the water slide, slipped all of the floats into the water, blew up a few extra beach balls, and pumped out some fun, up-beat music to set the mood. A few girls soon took turns doing crazy jumps from the diving board, jumps where they had to act like an animal, mid-air, before hitting the water. Just lounging in the sun was also pretty popular, for example on one of the big rocks near the lake. A couple of counselors showed up with muffins (yellow cake with roasted pumpkin seeds!), fruit and drinks for everyone to enjoy. In no time, it was a fun party!

The main event of the day, however, was something the CA campers (9th graders) have been planning since the first day of the session, something kept a secret this whole time, and something everyone looks forward to immensely… the final Banquet. This group of CAs decided to make their banquet revolve around the theme of “spies, detectives and mysteries” and entitled it, “Who Dunnit?” Their decorations, which completely covered every inch of wall spaces in the dining hall, were awesome posters of movie and TV characters like the Pink Panther, Inspector Gadget, Scooby Doo, James Bond, Men in Black, and Nancy Drew. Caution tape and balloons hung from the rafters. Then even further, all 29 of the campers dressed as a different character, from inspector Clouseau, to Dr. Doofenshmirtz, to Charlie’s Angels. All the CA counselors dressed as minions from the movie Despicable Me. The campers performed several choreographed dance numbers, enacted a skit investigating who stole the sun (I suppose a nod to the rainy weather we had this session), and served a meal of “Bondwiches,” “Secret Service Caesar Salad,” “Spaghetti & Mystery Meatballs,” and “Scooby Snacks” for dessert.

Mystery Banquet Theme
Scooby Doo costumes
Girls Banquet Table

The campers and staff members, all dressed in their green RBC t-shirts, danced and sang together between skits and performances. For everyone, this was a lavish party, pushed to the limit with plenty of sugar-fueled fun. At the end, it turned a little serious though, as groups of the oldest campers presented songs to their counselors, and vice versa. They took a well-known song and changed the lyrics to express the friendship and feelings that have grown over the session. It became clear just how much these girls have shared, and how much they’ll miss each other when the session ends Thursday morning.

Yes, the Banquet night can be a little emotional, like tonight, but ti was wonderful too.

Girls Camp kids

Independence Through Choice

Although girls naturally foster a sense of self-esteem and independence merely by being away from home at a sleep-away camp, Rockbrook goes out of its way to create the camp structure that best allows for girls’ growth and autonomy. One of the best ways Rockbrook allows for the self-direction and experimentation necessary to create a sense of independence is by giving girls the opportunity to design their own camp experience.

Girls camp knitters

One aspect of Rockbrook that sets us apart from other camps is that rather than sending our campers to pre-assigned activities, we ask them to choose which activities they’d like to take themselves. Twice a week, counselors go from cabin to cabin with clipboards displaying the choices for each of the four activity periods. Each camper gets to pick the four activities she desires, and her counselor fills them out on an activity schedule card.

Girls Camp Bead Craft

Girls, especially teenage girls, can often struggle with making decisions and expressing assertiveness. Rather than making the intimidating choice to express an opinion, they might instead opt to feign indecisiveness. This can be attributed to a variety of social pressures girls might feel; they could be worrying about making a decision that might upset others, or that making a choice could reflect poorly on them, making them look “dumb” or “weird.” Since each and every girl is asked to choose her own activities, free from the influences of family and friend groups from home, Rockbrook’s system of activity choice allows girls to enjoy the empowerment that comes from designing their own camp experience in a way that also preserves them from the anxieties created by peer pressure.

Girls horse camp

Although sometimes campers do not at first get to take their “ideal” schedule because an activity has been filled to maximum capacity, we go out of our way to ensure that each girl takes her most desired activity at least once by the end of the session. On Fridays we offer an extra “choice activity” to accommodate for the girls who have not yet had an opportunity to take some of the more popular activities here at camp.

In addition to picking their own regular daily activities, girls can also choose to sign up for special activities such as overnight backpacking trips, day hikes, and kayaking and white water rafting trips to nearby rivers.

One of the benefits of staying for a longer session at camp, such as our 4-week session, is that we have more time to fill with these special trips and activity sessions that girls can pick-and-choose from to create their own unique camp experience. For example, this session we have offered an unprecedented daily “roll clinic” to help aspiring kayakers learn how to “roll” their kayak back into an upright position if it flips over. We have also had special hikes to Quentin Falls, the Blue Ridge Parkway, and other nearby areas.

By not only offering a wide variety of exciting activities that girls are unable to do at home, but also allowing girls to choose for themselves which of those activities they would like to try, Rockbrook really does set itself apart as a “place where girls can grow.”

—Haley Hudler

Girls confident campers

For The Fun Of It

Searching for Tadpoles

“Non-competitive” is a word that gets a lot of use here at camp. It serves as a reminder to campers and staff alike to pursue camp activities for the joy of it—for the thrill of acquiring new skills, and embarking on new adventures—not for the sake of victory.

Rafters in the Mist

We do our best to bring this non-competitive flavor to every facet of camp life.  Every cabin gets their own unique “award” for their skits during Evening Program (“Best Break-Dancing Statue of Liberty,” and “Best Impression of a Watermelon” were some recent favorites of mine), every cabin gets a prize at the end of Counselor Hunt, and every girl even gets their own birthday cake on Birthday Night, so the fall-, winter-, and spring-babies aren’t left out.

It isn’t that we think competition is bad. On the contrary, competition can be exciting, enriching, and even wholesome in the right setting. What we do try to promote at camp, though, that might be different from the messages of schools and sports teams, is replacing the drive to win with the drive to accomplish.

Teamwork in the Lake

We encourage our campers to accomplish as much as possible in their time at camp. We offer reams of friendship-bracelet designs of increasing complexity for them to try their hands at. We coax tentative swimmers into swimming class, so they can work on their strokes with the lifeguards. We stand patiently at the bottom of the Alpine Tower, to talk nervous climbers all the way to the top. That heady sense of awe and disbelief when a camper achieves something she didn’t think she would be capable of is one of the greatest parts of the camp experience, and usually occurs in each girl at least once when she’s here.

While we encourage accomplishments like these whenever we can, we also do our best to take away the push and pressure to achieve them. We let girls work at their own pace, for example, and allow them to drop activities that don’t interest them after just three days, rather than forcing them to continue, as might happen in a school. We help them to enjoy the process as much as the result, to gain more from the experience than from the prizes at the end.

Dancing to "Grease"
Chitty Chitty Bang Bang

More importantly, we also try to strip away the urge to “get there first” that can be so prevalent in the outside world. That is, we take away that need to get to the top before anyone else, and to win at the expense of everyone else, that can so dampen the fun of any activity.

A perfect demonstration of this came in our Miss RBC pageant Sunday afternoon. Each cabin spent last week crafting their very own cabin “talent” for the show, which could have been a dance, a song, a skit, or anything else they could think of. All last week, I saw cabins working during their free times, planning during meals, and scavenging costume bins around camp, all to create the perfect talent for Miss RBC.

Every camper participated, and gave their all, making it a truly spectacular show. There were elaborately choreographed dances to songs from “Mamma Mia,” “Chitty Chitty Bang Bang,” and “Beauty and the Beast,” original songs about checking for lice and the joys of camp, and one wonderful skit put on by our youngest campers, acting out one of our favorite camp songs, “I’m a Little Coconut.”

Skipping

The most remarkable thing about the show, though, was the genuine enthusiasm with which each cabin cheered for all the others. Each cabin seemed thrilled simply to be able to put on their own talent for the rest of the camp, and derived just as much enjoyment from watching all the others’. There was no uneasiness when campers saw a cabin that did particularly well, and no jealousy or resentment displayed toward the cabin that ultimately won the pageant. Indeed, that cabin found themselves surrounded by well-wishers as soon as the show was finished. The winning cabin was proud, of course, that they had won, but I heard more of them complimenting the other cabins on their talents than touting their own accomplishment.

Camp, of course, is a unique environment, but I always hope that this is a lesson that our campers take with them into the outside world. That something should be created, a task achieved, or a goal accomplished, simply for the satisfaction of accomplishing it, rather than for the attendant recognition and glory.