After a few days of these long hours, I thought my body would be used to it. I thought wrong.
It rained all day, but that didn’t stop us from working our butts off. We spent the morning in first aid and CPR training, which was surprisingly physical and draining. Lots of skits and simulations. The highlight was when I was called up to play a victim, and Lucas had to bandage a pretend wound on my arm. Was it actually sexy? No. Was I turned on as he wrapped gauze around my elbow? Yep.
I keep daydreaming about him when he’s not around, and we usually find a way to be near each other when we’re in the same room. I think there’s some kind of party happening tomorrow night, so maybe I’ll woman up and make a move then? Is it too early in the summer to get involved? Who knows? I’m just here to have a good time.
And make great memories for the campers. Obviously.
The elbow bandage was the most exciting part of the day. After lunch, we sat in The Lodge for hours as Benny, Amanda, and Bert talked us through basically everything we’d ever need to know- daily and weekly schedules, how to manage pretty much any kind of conflict between staff and campers, how to deal with parents, etc.
I promised myself I’d write down everything about this summer, but most of today’s events really aren’t worth telling. It was a boring one.
This has been an excerpt from Camp Stories, a narrative podcast by Maddie Hammond. Listen to full episodes for free on Spotify and Apple Podcasts!
Because today was the first day with the whole staff here at camp, we started early. Really early. 7:30 am is the standard wake up time when campers are here, so that's when we woke up today in order to start getting used to the regular schedule.
Before breakfast, we gathered outside The Lodge for flag-raising, another part of a regular camp day. It was cool seeing the chosen staff members for the day- two older male counselors- unfold and raise the flag as a silent crowd watched. Very patriotic.
We sat with our cabin staff for breakfast, which is going to be the norm for the rest of the training week. This way, we’re already divided into groups for team building exercises. And bonding. Everyone is really into bonding here. It makes sense.
The morning was dedicated to a policy and procedures talk from a corporate-looking guy with a scraggly mustache and ironed jeans. He told us all about how to handle the less fun parts of working with kids- bullying, cliques, what to do if a kid tells you they’re being abused at home. It was another eye-opening experience for me. I’ve always been lucky to have a stable life at home with two loving and respectful parents. I wouldn’t go so far to say that my life has been perfect, but I teared up a little hearing about how domestic abuse can affect kids who come here.
I feel pretty prepared to be able to help, but I’m glad I have experienced women working with me.
At lunch, Jess and Cali filled me in on their favorite ways to deal with cliquey 12-year-olds- find common ground. They said that they are really able to get the girls to put aside their differences if they see themselves as a team, usually in a competitive event against the Cottonwood boys.
That makes sense to me, sort of a “the enemy of my enemy is my friend” mentality.
Since we had just spent about five hours in The Lodge, I was thrilled when Benny announced that we would be spending the afternoon hiking in the woods, learning about the local plants and animals. Even though I’ll be working at the water programs, Camp Harwood has a lot of all-camp wilderness programming. We’re going to end up taking a lot of hikes, climbing a lot of trees, and even spending the night in shelters we make.
The weather was beautiful today- sunny with a cool breeze. Perfect for spending time outside.
The staff of Cottonwood (Dave’s cabin) and my cabin paired up, and we spent most of the afternoon learning and perfecting survival skills, like how to build shelters and campfires. I was totally out of my comfort zone, but the entire group was so excited to help me learn.
After our hiking came dinner, then a short but intense game of all-camp, boys vs girls Capture the Flag. The boys found and captured the flag from our territory in about 20 minutes. They think it's because they’re so smart and fast, but in reality Amanda hid it in an easy spot so we could wrap the game up early and have some relaxing time at our cabins after a mentally and physically exhausting day.
I’m keeping this short (shorter?) tonight because I’m very sleepy.
This has been an excerpt from Camp Stories, a narrative podcast by Maddie Hammond. Listen to full episodes for free on Spotify and Apple Podcasts!
Today was… overwhelming. Exciting and fun, but overwhelming.
I met with the other first-year girls before breakfast. There’s no coffee here, but the girl who didn’t really talk to anyone but her boyfriend yesterday actually turned out to be awesome and surprised us all with canned coconut milk lattes she’d brought from home. Her name is Becca, and she’s living in Birch with the 11-year-olds. She brought a mini fridge and said we’re all welcome to use it.
We met up with everybody else in The Lodge, where the kitchen staff had put out a very minimal breakfast. Since there were only 12 of us (plus Benny) eating, they hadn’t bothered making a full hot meal, instead leaving us a spread of grocery-store pastries and a fruit salad that was mostly melon. I grabbed a banana and a bagel, and ate with Dave and Lucas. I must have missed it in the whirlwind of information we received last night, but Dave is working in Cottonwood, which is the brother cabin to Sycamore. I don’t really know what that means yet, but I think we do some shared activities. It’ll be nice to have him around, he’s a really cool guy.
I get the idea that Dave and Lucas are popular here, so it's interesting to me that we’ve become fast friends. Of course, I want to be a lot more than friends with Lucas… but I’ve been here less than twenty-four hours and I haven’t managed to scare off any potential friends yet! Maybe it's because I’m obviously not the weird one here. Compared to the twins, I probably seem normal! Maybe even cool!
The main floor of The Lodge is the dining hall, but the building has a lot more to offer. There is a giant porch wrapping around two sides, the main camp office in the back corner, and a large basement that is strictly for staff member use only. We checked it out after eating, and there’s a lot going on down there. Couches, TVs, board games, some computers, a vintage pinball machine. Dave told me most of it comes from alumni donations, adults who look back on their years here at camp and want the current counselors to have a place to unwind in our off time. I didn’t realize how involved the alumni would be, but Camp Harwood has been around for 90 years, so a lot of people have come here. And it seems like a lot of them loved it.
We spent the morning socializing in The Lodge as the rest of the staff arrived at camp. I ended up spending a lot of time with the first-year British staff, since like me, they didn’t know anyone else. We all sat on a couch and got to know each other while the returning staff poured in, laughing and hugging and reuniting after what had been a long year apart.
I’m not offended or feeling left out by how close everyone here is, I’m just happy to be a part of it.
Camp Harwood really values tradition, and the first lunch of staff training has a very specific menu. Ravioli lunch. Which, to me, is an odd choice. But everyone here loves it. By the time we sat down for lunch, the entire staff was here, banging their fists on the cafeteria-style tables and chanting “Ravioli! Ravioli!”
Meals here are served family style, so after each table was served heaping platters of ravioli, the next step of the tradition commenced. And I was not ready.
An older female counselor with a punky black haircut stood on her table and bellowed “Eat it with your faces!”
Everyone pushed aside their clean utensils and empty plates, and like vultures feeding on roadkill, started grabbing raviolis and shoving them straight into their mouths.
It. Was. The. Weirdest. Thing. I’ve. Ever. Seen.
But you know what I did? I ate that ravioli with my face like a wild animal. And it was awesome. Messy, but awesome. And delicious, I might add.
After a few minutes of total chaos, every ravioli had been devoured. Everyone started clearing the tables and washing up. It all happened so fast, and before I knew it, the whole staff was seated patiently and quietly, waiting for the welcome meeting to start. Once again, I felt like I was at wizard school, rather than summer camp.
Benny gave a welcome speech which was similar to the one he gave yesterday, but I had an easier time concentrating today. Sure, I was distracted by Lucas, who was sitting across from me, but the initial shock of seeing him for the first time had mostly worn off.
Benny is a modern hippie. His parents worked at Camp Harwood year-round when he was a kid, so he’s basically spent his whole life here, other than a few humanitarian trips he’d taken in his 20s. He loves this place and these people so much, and it's really cool to hear him talk about the difference we can make in the campers' lives this summer. I’ve been so caught up in my own adventure that I haven’t even been thinking about the kids.
After what may have been the greatest pep talk of all time, Benny introduced us to his assistants, Amanda and Bert. Amanda is the Land Director, overseeing all programs that don’t involve wearing a swimsuit (her words, not mine). Bert is the Water Director. Amanda rocks, Bert sucks. They both have solid credentials, both have graduated from college and are experts in their field, but my first impressions are usually right. Amanda is funny, energetic, and supportive. Bert is generic white-guy handsome, but he hasn’t smiled once and seems over it already. And of course, Bert is my boss, since I’m the water swing. Yikes.
We broke up to spend time in our program areas. So I got to hang out with Bert, who was quick to clarify that I’m the junior water swing. I’m not sure why he had to say it in such a demeaning way. The senior water swing is named Kyle, he and Bert seem to get along pretty well. I don’t want to immediately play the “I’m a girl, and I’m young, so they hate me” card, but that's the vibe I’m getting. I basically followed the two of them around the lakefront like a stray puppy as they talked about their plans for the summer, where they were going on the weekends, and who they were going to hook up with.
It was uncomfortable, but helped me get a read on their whole situation pretty fast. Luckily, I won’t be working directly with them most of the time, since we’ll be subbing at different water programs.
I ended up helping sweep out the boathouse as the sailing and boating staff brought the boats outside. It wasn’t very exciting work, but it was nice to have some alone time to think and process. Plus, the boathouse staff had a great playlist of pop/rock/rap mashups going.
The afternoon flew by, and before dinner the returning staff were all sorted into their cabins for the summer. Sycamore seems like a really cool group of girls. It's me, Cali, Alexa, and Jess.
Cali and Jess are both 4th-year staff, 22 years old, and best friends. Cali works at sailing, Jess at high ropes (with Lucas, hello)! This is Alexa’s 2nd year, and she’s from England. The three of them spent dinner telling me their favorite things about camp, as well as what to avoid. I think they all party pretty hard on the weekends. I keep getting grouped with the coolest people, which is both thrilling and terrifying.
We had free time after dinner, so we spent some time hanging up decorations in the cabin. We decided to make Sycamore as rainbow and bright as possible, so the girls don’t feel like they have to act grown up while they’re here. Cali and Jess have been in Sycamore every summer they’ve worked, and they told me all about how it's fun to encourage the 12-year-olds to be their true selves while they’re here, because puberty is hard, especially for girls. I love all the girl-power posters they’ve hung up- Captain Marvel, Wonder Woman, Princess Leia, Shuri. We even have a little framed photo of Ruth Bader Ginsburg above the door frame.
After covering the walls in rainbows and feminist icons, we met up with all the other Girls Camp counselors at the firepit between our cabins. We roasted marshmallows, braided each other's hair, and painted our nails. Just like a giant outdoor slumber party.
And of course, we talked about boys. And girls, there are a handful of LGBT staff here too. I was trying to get some info on Lucas without being too obvious. Cali can definitely tell I’m into him, but I think she’s the only one perceptive enough to figure out what I’m asking. Everyone has great things to say about him, as a friend. I guess I’m the only one having a sexual awakening every time I see him. So that's good for me.
I’m turning in for the night. What a great day.
This has been an excerpt from Camp Stories, a narrative podcast by Maddie Hammond. Listen to full episodes for free on Spotify and Apple Podcasts!
