My dad is the caretaker at camp, and so far this summer has sort of been a behind the scenes guy. He fixes things when they break and works on projects like building fences, and shelves and stuff. I love having him here because he's dependable and can do almost anything.
This week, my dad has added "rockstar" to his list of duties. We have had an outbreak of bees. There are nests everywhere and kids getting stung every time I turn around. Every time a nest is discovered, my dad has been there to spray it and get rid of the bees. Apparently this is very heroic to the campers, because he has become almost mythical in his bee killing ability. Last night I heard, "he's a hero. He saved our lives from the bees." And today, when yet another nest was discovered, I heard one of the little boys yell, "WHERE'S THE HANDYMAN??"
When my dad isn't busy fixing or building something, or saving the camp from bees, he is talking someone's ear off about one of his many interests including panning for gold and searching for cool rocks. The kids know about the rock passion, and like to rush up to him in the dining hall with rocks they have found and ask if they are "good rocks". Almost every day campers will ask me where the handyman is because they have a rock to show him. It makes me laugh and it makes me happy. Part of a successful camp community is having beloved members of the staff. My dad has just enough charisma combined with an interesting job here at camp to become what legends are made of.
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