Learning to Decide
July 21, 2015 by Dan Noland
The welcome showers of the last few days have brought cooler temperatures to camp, especially at night, and this morning’s sunrise was also clearer and softer as a result: the perfect opening frame for another wonderful day of being outside in camp, near camp and on more distant trips.
One of the interesting features of camp, where we support the guys in making as many of their own decisions as possible, is the tension that eventually results when someone wants to mountain bike around Guion Farm, swim at Hooker Falls, hike to Sam’s Knob, canoe the Green River, get their best time on the advanced climbing wall and ride their favorite horse, all on the same day!
Most of the time we can get it all done, but, when a youngster comes to grips with the fact that doing one thing sometimes means not being able to do another, they have learned a valuable lesson about life. For counselors, it is deeply gratifying to see the mature look in a camper’s eyes as they relate, maybe a bit ruefully, that they are happy to have chosen the way they did.
For instance, this evening a group of riders took a late trail ride, ate supper and then went to one of our shelters, where they will spend the night. I saw two of the guys go to their age-group leaders to inform them that they wouldn’t be able to go to the regular evening activities: canoe fill-ups and dodge ball, in this case. They are having fun and being responsible!
As a closing frame for the day, the sun set as gently and colorfully as it rose this morning, and the waxing crescent moon will help usher in the full katydid cacophony.
I already find myself a little wistful that we only have a few more times to post them this summer, so please enjoy tonight’s selection of pictures.
Good night,
Dan