Blood or Fire

~Is there blood or fire? If not, then it's not a real emergency~

That's my motto when it comes to reacting to incidents at camp. Camp staff have a tendency to see ALL things as URGENT EMERGENCY level when in reality, a locked sports closet or running out of orange paint are not what I consider crisis level.

Right before lunch this morning, it was all-camp capture the flag when we had an actual (read- involving blood) emergency. One of our CITs (counselor-in-training) had somehow managed to run into a window and had cut his head open. Head wounds bleed A LOT and it looked gruesome.

He was laying in the health center and I was holding bandages on it while the nurse was preparing to wash and examine him. He kept looking down at his hands (which were covered in blood) and he was visibly shaken. I talked to him and tried to keep him calm. As our nurse cleaned up his head, I called his dad to explain the situation. We needed to take him to the clinic to get stitches, but it wasn't a serious injury.

When I handed the phone to him, he started to cry as he talked to his dad. It was a good reminder to me that super cool, 17 year old tough guys are still kids- despite their appearance.

The parent ceremony was scheduled to begin 45 minutes later, so I sent 'A' and 'K' to take him to the clinic. I crossed my fingers they would make it back in time for him to ride the bus home (they did!) and I breathed a sigh of relief that it wasn't a serious injury.

6 years ago a kid broke her collar bone. 5 years ago a staff member collapsed outside the chapel from swine flu. 4 years ago I took a kid to the ER for an asthma attack. Last year I took a kid to the ER because she thought her tongue was swelling (it was just a sore throat as it turned out). Camp has been very safety focused and also very lucky to have few emergencies, but it's not something I take for granted, ever.

Earlier in the week, I had a discussion with the CITs about what made them nervous for next week when they would be assisting in the cabins. One of the kids said, "I am nervous about keeping the kids safe." And I replied, "I am nervous every minute of every day from the moment the first person steps foot on camp until the last person leaves." All of them sort of shook their heads and mumbled, "whoa" in response.

I think they are starting to understand why I say no to all of their "good" ideas and why I am so strict in so many instances. It was my idea to let a room full of kids shoot mini marshmallows all over the place in a chaotic, sugar filled frenzy- I am fun (whether they realize it or not). But I am also the person who calls home when someone gets hurt, so I am the one who gets to decide what is fun and what is a bad idea.