My Last Word On Camp
Now that the summer is over and the kids have not only returned home from Jewish sleepaway camp, but adjusted to life at home, I’ve had a chance to look back at their experience—or what I’ve heard of it—and draw some conclusions.
Home adjustment takes some time. They miss their camp friends and their school friends are in the middle of their own summer activities. They have been busy with activities 24 hours a day, and now have to come up with things to do on their own. The countdown to next year begins.
My kids, both girls, tell me a lot of what goes on at camp. The first weeks home are filled with stories about their friends, their counselors and their experiences. They write me lots of letters (although honestly, they don’t say a whole lot) and therefore, I have lots of questions—I’ve learned that most of the things in their letters that fill me with anxiety are a lot less serious when heard in person. They compete with each other to tell the most stories, in some cases, multiple times.
Despite the fact that I, personally, am not a camp person, I have seen that camp has been a wonderful experience for my children. They’d grown emotionally, religiously and socially. They’ve learned about the importance of taking care of others, of their environment and each other (at least temporarily—the fighting will commence in three, two, one…). They’ve adjusted to being away from home, figured out ways to alleviate homesickness, and crafted letters that I will keep forever (some of those I plan to pull out and show to whomever decides to marry them). They’ve survived for a month without cell phones, email or texting (and managed to understand FINALLY that the US Postal Service takes longer than Verizon Wireless).
However, despite all of these wonderful lessons, there are a few that I truly believe they could do without. In no particular order:
Piercings: My 13 year old would like a double piercing in her ear. I’ve informed her that I won’t allow it until she’s on her own (yes, I’m mean; no, I don’t care). I thought that was the end of it. I was wrong. A new girl at camp this year had multiple body piercings—tongue, cartilage, wrist, etc. While my daughter doesn’t want all of those, she now has several more that she does want. This I could have done without.
Boyfriends: My 11 year old’s friends all had them. Now, I’m not quite sure what one does with a boyfriend when you’re 11. I probably don’t want to know. But really, 11? I’ve heard many stories about what older camp kids do, and they make me shudder. I don’t want to send my daughters to an all-girls camp and I want them to have great relationships with kids, regardless of gender. I just am not quite sure I want to start the “boyfriend” thing so early.
Boobs: Yes, you read that right. There’s much I could say on this topic. Let me JUST say that I received a letter from one of my daughters saying, “You’d like my counselors this year, Mom. None of them have talked about, or shown us, their boobs.” Now that’s a GREAT recommendation!
Cursing: I’m a little confused here. The brochures and DVDs highlighting the camp did not show sailors, longshoremen or construction workers. They showed a beautiful campus in the Poconos with hundreds of children engaging in all kinds of great activities. So why, WHY are my children returning home talking like them?
They continue to tell me all sorts of stories, and ninety-nine percent of them are positive about their time at camp. And in case you’re wondering, yes, I’m sending them back next year. I do have one question though: There have been many studies about the benefits of Jewish sleepaway camp. I wonder how many studies have been done about the relationship between attending Jewish sleepaway camp and being subsequently sent to a convent?
