Earlier this summer, I worked at a summer camp settled in the mountains of North Carolina. It was quite the experience. While there were components of the job I loved, with the best one being the relationships I was able to build with my campers, there were several other parts of the job that made me question why I was there to begin with. I ended up leaving the camp less than halfway through and here's why. Here are the top ten reasons why I hated being a camp counselor.
1. The cultural appropriation.
From the Native American costumes worn by the head leaders of the camp to the chants sung to the making up of Native American spirits, the appropriation of Native American culture got old.... FAST.
2. The never-ending camp cycle...
Week one was interesting! It kept me on my toes and I was still getting used to the idea of being a counselor. However, then there was week two, and week three, and week four... The cycle never ends. The campers change, and they were all a joy... but everything else remains the same. The activities, the food, the people, the classes you teach... those don't change.
3. Goodbye, free time.
Working at camp is a 24/7 job. You get little time where it is quiet, let alone to yourself. Even rest periods would sometimes be used to teach us new camp songs. Camp becomes life.
4. Frozen cardboard food...
The FOOD! Uggh! Meals being recycled on a weekly basis. I survived off of packages of cereal and scavenged through the camp refrigerator in hopes of some type of fruit or vegetable. I gained some weight over the short period I was at camp. It was inevitable - you are eating almost exclusively fried brown food.
5. Being away from home...
It's summer break! I don't think I realized how much I would need a period of rest after my first year at college but being away from home, made me feel like I was missing out on seeing my family and getting refreshed for the next school year.
6. Being away from hometown friends...
But this was the killer! Almost all of my high school and hometown friends were home for the summer and WHERE WAS I??? On the other side of the state! Why would I voluntarily give up my very little time to reconnect with some of my closest friends?
7. The INSANE lack of diversity...
The camp I went to was almost completely white. I did not like this and neither did the three black counselors (out of over a 150-person staff).
8. I am happy, I am happy all of the time.
Let me thrust happiness upon you and throw glitter around and smile, smile, smile all day long! Here at camp we only know one emotion: happy!! It is hard to be able to stay sane when you must stay happy all throughout the day. I realize this makes for a good summer experience for the campers, but it can also be damaging to oneself as this makes it hard to cope with whatever you may be feeling.
9. Goodbye cell service. Goodbye to staying in touch with my life away from Camp.
Being tucked away on the North Carolina mountainside, cell service was almost a myth. I couldn't send messages except for a few discrete locations and don't even try making a call as it will be dropped in 2 minutes, max.
10. Camp people
This is very specific to my experience, but holy mother of CLIQUES! I thought that after high school, cliques were supposed to not be a thing anymore, but obviously, I was wrong. Camp was a place of petty gossip, backstabbing friends and exclusive cliques that made for an unpleasant experience.
