School has ended and summer has begun. All of my friends are talking excitedly about the plans that they’ve made for their summer. They talk about the beachy area that they are going to where they can sit in the sun for hours and sip on mimosas. They talk about the different countries that they are visiting to play tourist for a summer. They talk about the job that they received for the summer. My friends are noticing that I haven’t said anything yet and so they ask, “What are you doing this summer?” And so I look at them, a smile creeping onto my face, and reply proudly, “I’m a camp counselor”.
My friends look at me with a strange look on their faces. They don’t see the appeal in spending every day for three months with children. They just don’t quite understand why I would do that to myself. Can the job be stressful? Yes. Is the pay great? Not really. But it isn’t about the pay and it isn’t about having an easy and relaxed summer. It’s about helping a child.
This year is my second year as a camp counselor. I remember when I first started to work as a counselor. I had never really worked with children before so I wasn’t exactly sure what to expect. My first year was tough for me. I was learning as I went and I made a lot of mistakes that I learned from. I felt like a terrible camp counselor even though I was constantly reassured that I was doing a great job. So when camp ended, I didn’t at all believe that I had made a difference in the lives of my campers.
I went back to camp this year because I felt I had something to prove. I wanted to prove to myself that I had made a difference. That I did something right and could continue to do right by my campers. Although I came back for these reasons, I was still convinced that I had done a terrible job the previous year and that I hadn’t made a dent in affecting the lives of these kids. I went through staff training wondering what I could do different this year to make me a better counselor than last year.
It didn’t hit me that I had done a good job until the boys arrived at camp this year. I saw some of the boys that I had as campers last year and my first thought was that they were probably going to have a better counselor this year and how lucky they were. What I wasn’t expecting was for these boys to spot me and run up to me with a smile on their faces. I hadn’t seen them in a year yet they remembered my face. They remembered my name. They asked me if I was going to be their counselor again this year.
I was touched that I had made a big enough impression to be remembered like that. I thought that if they did remember me, that they were going to remember me with animosity. I never in a million years believed that they would honestly be happy to see me. They wanted to reminisce about the previous year. They wanted to come to my activities. It was humbling and I began to finally understand how big a part I played in their lives.
Kids come to camp and have the opportunity to learn new skills, to find themselves, and to learn from their counselors. But the kids aren’t the only ones learning something. By being a camp counselor I’ve learned how to work with children. I’ve been able to delve into how their brains work. I’ve begun to figure them out. I’ve learned how to better deal with stressful situations. I’ve learned how to build a fire and how to swim. I’ve learned how to become a good leader. I’ve learned that I matter and that I am important to not only the campers that I worked with, but to my co-counselors and friends here at camp.
Camp isn’t just some place that you go to make some money during the summer. Camp is where you make a difference and find another family. I’ve not only made great friends at camp, but I’ve found some sense of belonging. There are staff members here that I see as older siblings. I have many shoulders to cry on. I have many people at camp who protect me and understand when I just can’t deal with what is going on at camp. I struggle a lot with holding my emotions in. I’m a very sensitive person and I always feel like I am unable to express and communicate how I’m feeling to others without criticism and judgement. I struggle with these issues every day. However, when I’m at camp, I struggle a little bit less.
Having the opportunity to work at camp has helped me in my goal of helping others. The kids that come to the camp I work at often come from rough home lives and a rough history. Camp is their safe haven. It is very satisfying to work at this camp during the summer and help the kids who come from these rough situations have a fun filled summer. It is a good feeling helping a child learn that there is more to life than what they are going through at home. It feels good to help a child learn how to read or find a new hobby. Helping a child develop who they are and teaching them that they are not defined by their situation is one of the most important things I’ve ever had the opportunity to do and that’s why I love working as a camp counselor. Not because it gives me something to do during the summer. Not because I’m making a little bit of money. I work as a camp counselor because helping children who don’t think they can make anything of themselves learn that they CAN make something of themselves is a huge accomplishment and a wonderful feeling.
