There was a different feeling in the air this morning at Camp Highlander. A turbid mist still rolled over the Mills River valley. The rooster by the barn still crowed. The Bell still rang through the windows of each cabin to awaken each camper. The difference came in the smiles bore by the campers themselves. It wasn’t that their smiles had faded, or lacked a gleeful gleam. They were just the type of smile that comes at the end of a very long journey. It’s the smile of being content with hard work done. It’s the smile that says, “I’ve made it… look at all I’ve accomplished.”
This morning marks not only the final day of C Session, but the final day of Summer 2013 at Camp Highlander. Whether they have been here three weeks, six weeks, or eight, it is a moment of deep reflection and somber peace for our campers and staff. Tonight, there will be tears and there will be pining embraces, but most of all, there will be the culmination of memories shared.
Many people claim that it is not the destination, but the journey and how you take it that matters most. I believe such a claim rings truest in the realm of camps. The end of summer is always going to come. There is no prize nor medal waiting for any that make it to the end. The reward comes instead in how we each choose to spend the time leading up to the finish. It is the friendships forged, the memories experienced, and the lessons learned.
Summer camp offers more opportunities for a child to grow than any other environment available. They grow physically, mentally, and socially everyday. They can learn the skills of rock climbing, while also learning the importance of teamwork. Much like a sprout cannot healthily bloom into a flower without the right ingredients, we cannot successfully be who we really are without the right experiences to realize potential, learn aptitudes, and discover passions. It is through the robust journey camp offers that children blossom into the men and women they are meant to be.
So, here ends another journey at Camp Highlander… and so grows a few more struggling sprouts into blossoming flowers.
Until next summer,
One Love everybody
About Camp Highlander
