Good Clean Fun

June 14, 2018 by Don Gentle

It was a perfect summer day in the mountains.  You might even say it was a typical day in the mountains.  We had a cool morning that moved into a sunny day, followed by a short afternoon shower, and then the sun came right back out for a beautiful late afternoon and evening. the sounds of boys on the waterfront, in the gym, and screaming across the field.  It sure felt like a fantastic day in the mountains to me!

We have some great shots of canoeing, climbing, and hiking trips today. We sure had a blast.  I really enjoyed some of the lawn games we did at choice-period.  Just another benefit of summer camp at High Rocks.  You get to learn all the cool games that help you make friends.  Leisure is an important skill.  We do a pretty good job of it here at High Rocks.

While it could not have been a better day, the favorite part of my day was actually last night.  I really enjoy getting pictures on the lake in the evening sun.  The images all come out with this warm almost alpine glow.  Last night the oldest age group was playing a classic High Rocks game called “canoe fill-ups.”  It’s a typical event of controlled chaos that no parent would wish to oversee.  It starts with four boys in a canoe armed with paddles and bailers.  The object is simply to fill up your opponents’ canoes.  It quickly transcends into something completely different.

So I headed down to the waterfront with the evening sun just above the trees.  The oldest age group of boys was already mid-melee when I arrived. What I noticed after the first 80 frames or so was that this bunch of teenage boys was having the time of their lives.  The water was flying everywhere.  The screams and battle cries carried across the lake. The excitement was as if they needed to play this game to survive.  Well, in some ways they do.

In certain ways, I feel like these boys grow up too fast.  They are exposed to so much more than ever before and they are super busy most of the year.  Tonight there was no internet, no girls, no cars, no phones…  It was just boys having some good clean fun.  Life here at High Rocks allows these boys to take a break. Even if it is just a few short weeks a year.  I can’t think of anything more enjoyable than watching these guys just try to sink each other’s canoes. While their tenure here at High Rocks started several years ago, I certainly enjoy watching them still finding a way to have a blast!

Soon the age of innocence will pass.  More than likely it will be sooner than we think, and certainly sooner than we like. So please take a moment to look at these images in their full-screen option.  You’ll notice the cool card goes out the door.  They play like no one is watching and even if we were (I was)  they didn’t care.  What I enjoyed the most was that you could still see the boy in their faces like they were eight and it was their first year of camp. All of the smiles and laughter; it’s a rare moment to find that many teenagers having that much fun! If you listen really hard, you can hear them laughing, splashing, and screaming. You might even hear them say “I don’t ever want to grow up.”

Kids need summer camp… That’s my moment for tonight.

All the best,

Don Gentle

Today’s Pictures