Carnival Sunday

So, Sundays at camp are always a little different.  We like to slow down a bit, think about the week we just completed, and ponder on the week ahead.  This morning was that kind of morning. The sun was coming up and there was a nice cool feel to the mountain air.  Just about perfect!  Although I still woke up early, it felt a little more restful since I did not have to rush off to my morning meeting and the wake-up bell comes thirty minutes later Sundays. After a brief moment of peace on the back porch with my coffee and then some productivity time, I made my way to the dining hall 

The perfection was added when I walked into the dining hall to find the kitchen team rolling out scratch-made cinnamon rolls right on the table. While there were some still being rolled out, there were others just out of the oven!  I was so excited!  I felt like a schoolboy looking through the window at a Krispy Kreme shop.  If you’re from the Southeast, you already know.  The Wall of Glaze…  This is the term my friends and I came up with regarding the fountain of glaze that rolls over the doughnuts as they come out of the fryer in a Krispy Kreme shop.  While we didn’t have the wall of glaze, the icing was poured right out of a gallon pitcher over the cinnamon rolls!  It was lovely! A perfect match for my hot morning coffee. 

Sunday is also laundry day.  We have a service that brings all the camp laundry back in about 8 hours! I feel like that is impressive!  Anyhow, it also allows the boys to take some responsibility for their actions by sorting, gathering, and then hauling the bags to breakfast. It is no small task to get it all up to th evan by breakfast.

After breakfast and a brief assembly, we headed down to the lake for some inspirational songs and a short message. I spoke this morning on The High Rock Way. It’s a small compass inside every cabin to remind the boys of the direction we expect here at High Rocks. I talked to the boys about the four cardinal points. Honesty, Adventure, Individual, and Respect. I asked a few questions just to see if they were listening, but I think it was a good moment for all.

After our morning service, the boys spent some free time in their age groups either on the activity field, the lake, or the tennis courts.

The afternoon was the highlight of the day at the annual High Rocks Carnival! It happens only on this Sunday of the two-week session.  Boys play some games of skill, have fun on some inflatables and even enjoy a snow cone. There is also some face painting and additional fun events.  It is always a hit!

After dinner, we had an all-camp campfire to finish out the day and think about the week ahead. The boys had a hard time believing that there are only five days left of camp. 

We wrapped up talking about the upcoming five days remaining, shared a thought that was then passed to another, and sang taps.  We quietly descended to our cabins for the evening ready for the week ahead.

It is going to be great! Tune in tomorrow!

-Don Gentle

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