Tie-Dye Tuesday

The first morning at camp began, for most, a bit earlier than the 7:45 wakeup bell. As soon as the sun crests the horizon and the birds start their chatter, so too do our excited young guys waking up in a new environment for the first time. The cool breeze blowing in off of the lake kept the beds cozy enough that few were leaving their bunks before time however!

Ring the bell did, and up popped our fellas to handle their new morning routine of making their beds, getting their personal stuff organized, and then each handled a chore for the cabin as a whole. Guys were working the broom or mop, taking out trash, wiping down bathroom fixtures, and bringing in dry stuff from the clothesline. Part of the process is just learning the skills to do some of these chores, all in a chaotic choreography with the rest of their cabinmates, and under the gun of breakfast coming in thirty minutes.

After a delicious breakfast with bacon, eggs, yogurts, cereals, coffee cake, and fruit, it was time for assembly in the gym. We gather as a group with the camp musicians to sing songs and get everyone pumped for the day. There are special announcements of happenings during free time and choice period, feedback is given on the inspection of each cabin’s cleanup efforts, and then its off into the day.

Foxhollow jumped into three activities this morning with crafts, a hike, and another round of archery/riflery. Flattop had their crack at our high ropes course for the entire morning, finishing off with the zipline to cap off the experience.

A brief free time of gaga, disc golf, games in the gym, and an opportunity at the camp store led the way into a lunch of chicken tacos. Then it was time for rest hour, which is exactly that as everyone returns to their cabins for some quieter time. This is a great chance to catch your breath a bit during a long and busy camp day. Guys were reading books, playing games quietly with cabinmates, and a couple were even producing correspondence!

The afternoon saw both groups take turns riding horses and getting a tennis lesson from our head of tennis who moonlights as the Brevard College head coach. Choice period was marked with a surprise rainstorm where the canoe fill-ups option was clearly the crowd choice. Almost everyone made their way to the canoe docks to hop in boats with 2 or 3 others campers, arm themselves with bailers, and proceed to sink everyone around them. No one survived the hour, though everyone realized that getting sunk, or flipping, was great!

Victorious, soaked, and chilly we grabbed dry clothes and booked it to dinner for some pizza, salad, fruit, and chocolate chip cookies. Then it was back into swimsuits for an evening on our huge slip-n-slide followed by ice cream… Life is rough!

Everyone is settling into call to quarters now, with hot showers and pajamas making people realize what a big day they just had. After some cabin meetings and a couple of chapters read out of their cabin book, there shouldn’t be a single pair of eyes still open. Which is good, as tomorrow is coming and promises to be just as busy as today!