When you move into a summer camp, it's a strange place that you have probably never seen before, with people you have never met before. You are nervous, scared, excited and truly every emotion you can imagine. And just like that you are thrown into staff training; you are learning all about your camp, all while trying to meet your staff. Although staff training only lasts a week or so, this week is full of memories that you will cherish for a lifetime. You begin to meet your staff, hear their stories and probably play some awkward get to know you games, but you love every minute of it. Then all of a sudden camp officially begins and campers are arriving. You have had such short time to meet your staff, but now it's time to give these campers the best week of their lives. Because although you may have 10 to 12 weeks of camp, this is your campers only week of camp. This is the time where you break out of your shell, you push yourself and you become a kid again (all while trying to take care of kids).
In the next few weeks of camp you are living with different staff each week and seeing why each staff member came to camp. You see how much they put their campers first, as well as how much they love and care for each individual camper they come across. Through these weeks of camp, you begin to realize that the staff you work with are your family. You see your staff more than your own family over the summer, so they are truly the next best thing to a family.
Just like any other family, you will have your highs and lows. They will witness you on your best and worst days. You might get in arguments, or get upset with each other. However, at the end of it all, you come through because you are a family. Some of your favorite moments of camp may be with campers, but most of those moments include your staff as well. You will laugh, cry, dance, scream and sing with your staff all summer long. You spend all your breaks between weeks of camp together, adventuring the city you work in and just trying to go back out into the "real world." You'll get weird looks from those in the city working when you go into a local restaurant asking for a table for 20. Or sometimes the locals of your city can automatically tell you are the city's summer camp staff just by your mannerisms, and truly I found that the funniest.
Then the time you never thought was coming arrives. It is when your time at camp comes to an end, even though it feels like you never truly got started. You wish for one more break together, for one more adventure, for one more week of camp, for one more bonfire, for the summer to start all over. You sit as a staff for the last the time and it's mind-boggling to think this is the last time you will see some of these people. You can't wrap your brain around the fact that you only spent a short two or three months together, but you can't imagine your life without them.
The staff you worked alongside saw you at your best and worst times and loved you through it all. They never failed to fill the day with lots of laughs and smiles, but also a shoulder to cry on when needed. You have the best inside jokes, that consist mainly of camper quotes from previous weeks. They filled your summer with pure joy, and although the campers were always first, your staff is always second. You would truly do anything for your staff and do anything to have one more day all together. And although some of your staff was closer to you than others, you loved them equally and unconditionally. Honestly, because they were your family and always will be your family.
Even though camp is over, the friendships you made with your staff will last a lifetime. You'll go on to do great things but you will never forget the people or the summer that changed you for the better. People always tell you how great it is to be counselor, and they always have a hard time telling you why. Some will tell you because the kids will fill your summer with so much joy. And they do for sure. Some will say it's because you get to live in the beautiful nature. Which in fact is also true. However, one key point I think it missed is that your staff will be some of the most important people in your life.
So once again, thank you to the summer camp staff that challenged me, loved on me, danced with me, cried with me, laughed with me and most importantly, changed me.
