June 4 2025
Breakfast Club this week will focus on social growth (making friends and being friends). Everyone wants to make friends, but it is often hard to make that first step. This has become particularly challenging due to the prevalence of screens. When I was growing up, it was easier to talk to a stranger because I didn’t feel like I was interrupting their work. If they weren’t reading or writing, I knew I could say hello. Now, I often feel that people are busy and not interested in talking because they’re always on their screens. That is not something we deal with at camp, so it is easy to connect with other people.
Making a new friend enhances every experience. It makes an otherwise “fun” day special, so at camp, we actively engage in expanding our friend group every day of the week. A smile is the “secret” to this process. I demonstrated this fact with a real-world example from my trip to Lowe’s yesterday afternoon. I was on a mission to buy a new dryer for the kitchen and put on my “busy” face. I walked through the store quickly, my face set in an intense look (embarrassingly, I was wearing my Taco Cat shirt, thus ruining the effect). I then demonstrated the look with a quick walk through the dining all… all agreed that they would not think of speaking to me in such a time. All agreed that it is better to walk and smile at the same time… when eyes meet, say Hi. It is fun! It is the way we do regular things at camp, and it results in new friendships being made every day. These friendships often develop into something special, lasting a lifetime and marked by a depth that is surprisingly different from our other casual relationships.
Camp friendships have a lasting foundation in Christ. Rather than connecting over something superficial (like the brand of clothes we wear), we connect with little acts of kindness in everyday circumstances. These connections develop naturally and are particularly strengthened by a DMC (Deep, Meaningful Conversation). DMCs will become widespread next week, but some started last night at Shoppe. The tradition makes me happy because I see the sweetness of their influence immediately. Another crop of camp friends is already growing! These friendships are deeply felt and genuinely real. They grow stronger with time. Such friendships will be easily re-established even after months or years apart.
One other observation from Breakfast Club… there has been exponential growth of girls who jump up and clap their hands, saying “It’s A Great Day” first thing in the morning. When reveille blows, they do it, even if they are the only ones. Yesterday, only 10-20 girls did it but today the group grew to 40-50. Tomorrow, we might be half of camp! Imagine what an impact that will have! At the very least, it will make a number of girls laugh. More than that, it adjusts our minds to expect good things rather than bad. All part of the “Great Day Attitude” that mirrors the Gospel message.
Camp is a place of enormous positive energy, marked by kindness and love, a place of smiles and meaningful conversations. In such a setting, we become more resilient. It is a wonderful reason to send your children to camp! I wish all children had this opportunity… it can change a life.
Breakfast Club Joke “In Stink”.
Breakfast: Pancakes and Sausage
Lunch: Roast Beef Sandwiches, Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies
Dinner: Pork Chops, Cheese Ravioli, Apple Sauce
WEATHER: Partly Cloudy, 78 degrees… perfect weather for camp!
But We Are Prepared For Lightning… North Carolina has the second-highest number of lightning strikes of any state in America (Florida is #1). We have prepared the camp to be a safe place in a storm:
- A great lightning detection and warning system (Perry Weather) that lets us know if a storm is about to hit. We have found it to be very accurate.
- Lightning Rods on our tallest trees… We have grounded the biggest trees around the lower campus. Thus, when lightning strikes our trees (where it usually hits), it is immediately routed through a thick cable into the earth and poses no problem.
- Protocols… we have dealt with lightning storms in a camp setting for a hundred years!
These storms typically last around 20 minutes, providing an excellent opportunity to play games and get to know each other. These unexpected moments often end up being a favorite memory from the summer!
Another thing you should know about! The Lake is at “flood stage” level all day, every day this summer. Hurricane Helene damaged many things in North Carolina last fall, one of them was the dam that controls our lake level. The power company that owns the dam has not yet determined the best plan to repair this 105-year-old generating station. Until they fix it, the lake level cannot be controlled, and the water simply flows over the top of the dam. Good news: the dam is in great shape (engineers say it is suitable for a very long time to come). Bad news: the generating station is very hard to repair, and the engineers have not yet settled on a plan. For this summer, the lake will remain high, making our lower campus (and soccer field) soggy. Some of our docks are underwater (canoe, fishing, and sailing docks have a 1-3 inch covering of water), and the soggy grass is sure to turn muddy when trampled. We will do our best to make the best of these less-than-perfect conditions (our first project is building a new boardwalk to better access the waterpark docks).
Thank you for checking in! I hope you are having a GREAT DAY!
