Amongst the parties, music festivals, vacations, and ample amount of time without school work, it's easy to forget about actual responsibilities in the summer.
We all know that getting a summer job isn’t exactly the most exciting way to spend our three months of freedom. But nonetheless, come May, students all over campus search for jobs in their hometowns or around Madison. Coffee shops, restaurants, clothing stores, and nanny jobs tend to be the most popular. After working at an overnight summer camp the past two summers, I’ve gained a different perspective on the term “summer job.”
Yes, I do miss out on many fun and exciting events between the months of June and August, but I also gain a whole lot of experience. Dealing with children between the ages of seven and fourteen, you see a broad spectrum of different behaviors and stages of life. Little ones cry if they can’t find their towel or don’t get their way while older ones may be going through the more serious problems that come with being a pre-teen facing the pressures of high school. Regardless of age, these kids come to camp to have fun, make friends, forget the real world for a little while, and maybe even grow as individuals. Whatever their reason, they leave camp with some kind of different perspective; it may be trivial like realizing that you can tie your shoes a different way, or it may very significant like realizing that they can go out of their comfort zone and face their fear of heights or meeting new people. Being a summer camp counselor may have its ups and downs, but ultimately, as the last week comes to end, you realize that you made some sort of impact on someone else. Whether it is a fellow staff member or a clumsy eight year-old, you had an opportunity to interact with them in a unique setting free from real world pressures and responsibilities. The job may pay a lot and it may prevent you from having a traditional summer experience, but it allows you to be a kid. In fact, for that reason, it’s hard to call it a job at all.