A Day in the LIfe...

6:15am- Wake up, get ready
6:35am- scramble around, type random things, make photocopies, check email, scramble around, manage to get dirty.
7:15am- flag raising followed by morning prayer
7:45am- breakfast
8:35am- groups divide into first program area. I scramble around making sure kids are going where they need to be, counselors are going where they need to be. Kids decide they need to switch activities, kids arguing, kids going to the nurse, I scramble around.

Then I spend the majority of my day scrambling around some more. The camp store still wasn't fully organized until Tuesday afternoon and it took a lot of work to get it there. There was an emergency in art because all of the plaster stars kids were making were breaking and I had to drop everything and figure out how to fix the plaster. After ten minutes, I was covered in white powder and white pasty substance, but the stars were fixed (sorta).

Today I was in the middle of a project when we my favorite counselor came in to let me know her cabin was going tubing, but didn't have a person to drive the pontoon (Boss drives the speedboat with the lifeguard, pulling the tube, someone follows behind with the other 10 kids on the pontoon). I don't know how to drive a pontoon, so I had to learn right then and there and then spend the next hour doing my best not to have a boating accident (while smiling and chatting with the campers).

I have mediated a few arguments, led a very loud a fabulous round of group songs last night, spent four hours writing schedules on Monday night, washed a few loads of tie dye tee shirts, and a multitude of other interesting things.

People sometimes ask me what I do in a day. I have no idea. I scramble around in a swirl of children and laughter and sunshine and craziness. I have a long "to do list" that I carry around for the moments I have in between surprises. But for the most part I just listen to my walkie talkie and respond to whatever is going on right at the moment. I try to do everything while smiling. And I try to do everything I can to help the campers and counselors feel loved and cared for and listened to and valued. It isn't always easy, but it's very interesting and I LOVE it.