S.I.T. Year At Camp Barney Medintz Helped Me Discover My Passion For Horses

Camp Barney Medintz is my summer place and my second home. It is a Jewish summer camp that I have gone to for the past eight summers, which proves how much I love it. I have made life-long friends there that I talk to everyday, and I can never get enough of camp. This summer was different from all other summers at camp. For the seven summers before this one, the people in my age group were campers, but this year, we almost became part of the staff. S.I.T. stands for "staff in training," so this year, we got to explore what it is like to be on staff.

We were given three day rotations for five different areas of camp to explore that staff area. The specialist options were horseback, waterfront, sports, arts and crafts, nature, theater and media. There were also unit rotations, which means we went around with a cabin of kids ranging from eight to 12-years-old. These rotations allowed us to determine where our place was in the Camp Barney staff.

My first rotation was arts and crafts, and to be honest, I wasn't that thrilled that I got it in the first place, but after the first day, I liked it. It was very chill, and when I was doing an activity with a cabin, I could actually get to talk to them, which is something that I really enjoyed. Although, by the third day of my rotation, I realized that it got very repetitive, so I didn't think that I could do that for two months straight.

My second, fourth and fifth rotations were all very similar because they were all cabin rotations. I had three groups of girls. The first group was eight years old, the second were nine and 10, and the third were 11 and 12. I basically experienced what it was like to be a counselor, and I absolutely loved it. I have always loved being around kids and being a mentor to them and a big sister to them. I became close with all of my girls. One of them I was really proud of because she was very shy and doesn't really talk much to people she doesn't know, but after a day, she was giving me hugs and talking to me, and I felt amazing that she opened up like that.

My third and probably favorite rotation was horseback. When we are on specialist rotations, we shadow someone which basically means that we follow around, and they teach us the basics of what it is like to be on that specific staff area. I shadowed someone named Max, and he was awesome. He helped me fall in love with horseback. I helped him take care of his houses, and it was amazing to see how someone can bond with a horse.

What was also amazing was how close the horseback staff was to each other. It seemed like they were all best friends and that is one thing I would really like in a staff position. I fell in love with all of the horses at the barn, and I love doing what all of the staff do to take care of the horses, like turning them out of their stalls, mucking and the horses' morning routine.

Horseback is awesome. Horses are the prettiest animals, and not only do I get to ride them, but I also get to take care of them. They are beautiful animals and never cease to amaze me at how graceful they are and how caring they can be to the staff and the kids that ride them. My horseback rotation has helped me appreciate how cooperative the horses are with us and the children and just simply how amazing they are. I cannot wait until I am hopefully on horseback staff in the summer of 2019.