After a long, exhausting summer, I am still asked, "Why do you still go back and deal with those annoying kids every summer?" It's true, spending your hot summer days chasing around hyper adolescents doesn't seem like the ideal summer job, but that's where you're wrong. These five things are the main reasons camp counselors return to this unique and rewarding job each summer!
1. The Memories
This one is an obvious given, but my favorite memories from any summer have come from my job at camp. I have had the most rewarding, crazy, embarrassing stories that stem from being a part of this thing that is so much bigger than myself. The atmosphere of camp hits you like a truck and you can't help but have the time of your life, regardless if it is the first day of June or the last day of August.
2. Weird Traditions/ Competitions
Every camp has its own traditions. Whether it's a certain food in the dining hall, a weird competition or even counselor traditions. Every song, dance, food and competition becomes associated with summer forever. Some of the stuff I'll never forget, from a color war to singing around the campfire to a big kickball game whenever it rains, the traditions we keep are weird but there our own.
3. The Other Staff
The memories you make are only as good as the people you make them with. My co-workers and friends have the craziest stories and inside jokes a person could think of. The friends I make as a camp counselor are the friendships I know I will cherish and look forward to every summer. The bond you share with the other counselors at your camp are just as important as the bonds between the campers and the counselors, or the bond between the campers themselves.
4. The Campers
You swear this group would be the end of you. These crazy kids are the reason you're there and the reason you pass out in your bed before 10 p.m. every night. Spending every day for an entire summer (or however long) with the same kids, you begin to recognize every mischievous smile and know who exactly threw their hot dog in the cafeteria. You also get to know each kid individually. are they an arts and crafts kid or a sports kid? A shy kid or the one you can't get to listen unless you make them a deal? All these add up to the unique experience you get every summer. It even becomes even more sentimental as you see the kids you had your first summer grow up each and every summer, it's a weird sentimental feeling, but nothing you wouldn't change.
5. Being A Role Model
Everyone wants to be a hero to someone. It's so nice and rewarding to be someone that a kid looks up to and admires. Being a camp counselor gives you an opportunity to be that person. The feeling that I get at the end of each summer, seeing how much the campers have grown and learned, is one of the most rewarding experiences I've had in my life. It's the reason I decided to devote my career to teaching, and the reason I, and every other camp counselor, spend every summer in the heat trying to help a camper see the world a little brighter.
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