Less than a week! Rockbrook will open in just 5 short days, and boy are we excited! (Have you seen the countdown timer on the sidebar lately?). Throughout the spring as we’ve planned and prepared for our 2013 summer season, as we’ve finished building projects, organized activities and special events, we’ve gotten more and more eager to get started. This past Sunday was the start of our week-long staff training session. There are about 60 of these college-aged women who are now at camp because this summer they will be cabin counselors, outdoor adventure guides, equestrian instructors, craft specialists, and sports coaches. Add to that several nurses, the entire kitchen crew, and maintenance staff, and you can imagine the buzz of activity suddenly energizing the camp.
In addition to the directors and the staff members, we’re hearing from campers too, many of the girls who are bursting with glee to finally get to camp. Here is a collage, made by Eva, that conveys this feeling of excitement. It’s impossible to not feel excited when Rockbrook is so much fun “it’s like a rocket,” and is “addicting” like the “sweet and spicy” taste of “cinnamon.” Whether in 1962 or 2001, or this year, Rockbrook is a place to make new friends and do new things.
Camp is fun. There are shaving cream fights, muffin breaks, kayaking trips, Dolly’s visits, hiking overnights, funny skits, and so much more. However, camp is about way more than just the fun. The entire Rockbrook experience is meant to matter in very meaningful ways. It is about building character traits that will help us later in life— confidence, independence, individuality. It is about being with nature. Camp is about making friends who last. The spontaneity, the adventure, the laughter and the FUN found at camp will stay with us long after we leave the Heart of the Wooded Mountain.
At Rockbrook, our mission is:
To provide a haven for girls, a place of their own, where they can explore the beauty of nature, try new things, enjoy carefree summer living, and make some of their very best friends.
An interesting article written on the Tennessee Today webpage sheds light on the importance of playing outside. A University of Tennessee research team recently conducted a study to determine whether children who play on traditional playgrounds or children who play in natural settings are more active and/or more creative. It turns out that children who play in a natural setting are both more active and use their imagination more than they do while playing on traditional playground equipment. In fact, the children who participated in the study played nearly twice as much in the ‘natural playscape’ than they did on the regular playground. This came as no surprise to us at Rockbrook. We love playing in nature!
Run girls, run!
So what is it about nature that inspires us to play more than we would on a playground set? Maybe it’s the freedom that we have to use our imagination and get creative. Maybe it’s being able to decide what to do on our own. Maybe it’s the excitement of the unknown. Whatever it may be, we believe that the landscape that surrounds us fosters Rockbrook’s mission to allow girls to explore the beauty of nature and to try new things.
We love to play in the stream!
Playgrounds are great and all, but who is ready to ditch the swing set and monkey bars and head into a fairyland of beauty? We can’t wait to play outside with you all this summer!
We’ve written before about how to make a s’more, and even discussed the history of s’mores, but now the folks over at REI have put together a cool infographic explaining what s’mores are, a few tips about making them, and some great ideas about variations you can try (adding peanut butter, for example). Take a look!
With summer drawing to an end and so many kids returning home from summer camp, Talya Minsberg writes in the New York Times about What Parents Don’t Get About Camp. The piece is partly a fond memory of life at camp for both campers, who “find the joy of growing and exploring on their own,” and as a staff members, who are the “warmest, silliest, most fun (and responsible)” people they can be. It’s one author’s recollection of how summer camp is a magical place bubbling with experiences for positive transformation. The article hints at the features of camp life that make it difficult to describe, that make kids’ stories from camp seem so inadequate— the close friendships, the freedom and independence, how hilarious things were —but in the end suggests it’s OK for parents and noncamp friends to not fully understand “camp.” You have to experience summer camp, to really “get” it.
And since camp is “a place of their own” (as Rockbrook’s mission recognizes), it’s perfectly natural, even preferable, for others to mistake what camp really is, to grasp only a faint sense of what it means to the campers and staff members who live it. We have to agree; it’s hard to describe the magic felt from living like we do at Rockbrook (despite our attempts to describe it all summer long), but that’s just part of it, and in the end, a very good thing.
Sometimes people ask if the summer seems to pass slowly or quickly for us at Rockbrook. Oddly, it’s both. Today, our last day of the 2012 summer season, we look back and recall all the amazing things we’ve done- the horseback riding, whitewater rafting, zip line rides, pottery, archery, swimming, etc. —and it seems like our opening day was months ago. With so much accomplished, it just had to have taken a really long time! But also, staying busy everyday, packing each day with activities, events and memorable moments, makes the weeks zip by. “It’s 12:30 already?!”
This strange speedy/slow pace is the mark of a truly rich experience. Add to that the fact that we’re all so close at Rockbrook, such good friends, so enthusiastic and genuinely happy, and you can begin to understand why we love camp this much.
Also, you can see why saying goodbye is so hard. We’ll miss all our amazing friends, the silly, terrific fun of camp, and how the whole experience makes us feel. For every session this summer, camp has proven once again to be a magical place filled with spirit and wonder.
It has been a pleasure to spend these few weeks with your delightful girls. Thank you for sharing them with us! And while we must say goodbye for now, we’ll look forward to seeing them again next summer here at Rockbrook.
For years now, ever since the early 1960s, Rockbrook has been holding camp dances with the boys of Camp Carolina— both camps shared the same owners, the McConnells, for a while beginning in 1961 (Have you seen the RBC History Video?). In addition though, we’ve also held archery, riflery and tennis tournaments each session, with the RBC girls challenging the CCB boys to a friendly competition. It was today that our sharpest arrow and bullet launching ladies and racket wielding women traveled across town to show the boys how it’s done. The girls, dressed in special t-shirts they made for the occasion, came ready, and by the end of the morning, had soundly beaten the boys in all three sports! Archery scored more than 90 points to best the boys and riflery won by more than 10. A great showing!
Barn Party Fun for Everyone
Back at camp, Kelly and the Equestrian staff had organized a barn party for everyone, both riders and non-riders alike. There were simple hand-line pony rides and other games to try, but the funniest event was a relay that challenged two groups to put on baggy clothes and ride across the field the fastest. Riding in all those layers, and carrying an enormous handbag made it a little challenging too!
The 101 Dalmatians Musical
After packing our trunks and moving them to the Landsports barn for tomorrow’s pickup, we were treated to this camp session’s musical performance, 101 Dalmatians. This was a delightful production with homemade costumes (lots of white puppies with black spots, hair in ponytails as ears!), painted scenery, props, as well as choral numbers, solo songs sung, and a cute suspenseful story. The fiendish Cruella de Vil, who plots to make a dalmatian fur coat, is foiled in the end and Roger and Anita adopt all of the 101 puppies spared, the cutest, most bright-eyed smiley puppies you’ve ever seen.
Spirit Fire Reflections
The final event of this, our last full day of camp this summer, was our traditional all-camp campfire we call our “Spirit Fire.” The setting for the campfire is beautiful with all of the campers and counselors dressed in their white and red uniforms, a bright orange, yellow and white fire blazing, the huge white oak and hemlock trees towering above with the dimming grey blue sky above us. The tone of the evening is more serious and reflective than what we ordinarily enjoy at Rockbrook, as tonight’s program is something that’s been passed down for generations— traditional, harmonious songs, and short speeches and comments about camp prepared by campers from each Line, counselors, and Sarah. These are opportunities for the girls to say something about what Rockbrook has meant to them this summer, to express how they feel about camp and the people they’ve come to know and befriend while here. Some of the comments are quite moving, easily bringing emotional tears, while others are truly insightful, like tonight when a counselor told us that for one of her campers, she loved RBC because “it’s the kind of place where it’s OK to wear your shirt inside out.” That seemed spot on. To put it differently, Rockbrook is a place where it’s OK to be your real self, where you’ll be loved for who you really are, and not for just your appearance, talents, or grades. It was such the perfect thought to end this wonderful session.
In so many ways during this time together, we’ve lived with our shirts inside out. And it’s been great!
Over the last two days, Rick and his friends in the Rockbrook kitchen, have been preparing a special treat for us, and today we all enjoyed it. You may be able to tell from this photo, but the treat was authentic homemade, completely from scratch, tamales. A tamale is an ancient, traditional Mesoamerican dish made from finely ground corn, lime, oil and stock combined into a paste, spread into a corn husk with meats or peppers as fillings, and then cooked by steaming.
Each one requires the masa (corn dough) and filling be combined and rolled in the corn husk by hand. But it doesn’t stop there. In addition, the chicken used for the filling is first roasted an shredded off the bone, but then combined with a homemade Guajillo chili sauce, which gives it a bright red color. They also made a green variety using tomatillos, serrano peppers, onion and garlic. For the vegetarians, they steamed a cheese and Ancho chili pepper variety. Can you see why this took two days, especially when almost 700 tamales needed to be made? And the results… Unbelievably delicious. Certainly many of the girls and a few of the counselors had never before tasted a treat like this, but like many of the “firsts” experienced around here— first ride on a zip line, first time shooting a gun, first time cantering a horse —camp is a great place to give it a try. There’s just the right amount of encouragement and “positive peer pressure” to give hesitant girls a little nudge outside of their routine, to challenge their assumptions.
Naturally, at a camp like Rockbrook, with almost 30 different activities and a special event or surprise planned almost everyday, the opportunities for first experiences are diverse and abundant. The girls here can do some amazing stuff, and even if they’ve already felt the chill of Sliding Rock in Pisgah, climbed a real rock using those amazing “sticky” shoes, or enjoyed a long-range mountain view after hiking a steep trail to a rock cliff, for example, it will be a first for them to do it with these people, with this all-girl group of comfortable friends. The same is true for throwing their first pot on the wheel, seeing beautiful cloth take shape off their loom, learning the “trick” to a one-handed cartwheel. There are so many examples! A girl’s experience at camp is a treasury of firsts that she’ll hold dear for many years to come.
It’s significant, too, that this special place for first experiences, this close-knit camp community defined by respect and cooperation, makes it easy to feel successful, and thereby fosters girls’ self-esteem. We’ve written before about the link between success and self-esteem at camp, so please take a look. There’s the good feeling of discovering a hidden talent when you first try something, a sense of personal achievement, but there’s also success to be found in general “social competence,” and in being included in group endeavors. Since so many of the firsts at camp happen in this positive social setting, they tend to be far less frightening. Knowing that you’ll be supported no matter what individual outcome occurs, seeing other girls laugh and enjoy unfamiliar activities, really helps make any first experience a success and thereby a real boost to a girl’s growing self-esteem.
Our twilight activity tonight was everyone’s favorite, a shaving cream fight down on the grassy sports field. It began with everyone interested (like all twilight activities, it was optional), dressed in their swimsuits, lining up along one side of the field. On the other side, we scattered about 120 cans of plain shaving cream. At the signal, everyone ran to grab a can and then to let their foam fly. Complete mayhem ensued, and in about 30 seconds, everyone had shaving cream on their backs, stomachs and in their hair. That’s basically the point of it, like this photo shows so well; it’s to sneak up on your friends and mischievously “get them” with the white foam. And oh what big fun this is! It almost feels a little naughty to spray people, but it’s also pretty hilarious to do. We also pulled out the slip-n-slide for a now extra slippery ride. With everyone basically covered, in some cases completely covered, and all the shaving cream cans emptied, we rinsed off a bit under the hoses and headed up to camp for a warm shower. Another first at camp? Perhaps, but certainly a good one too.
One feature of camp life at Rockbrook that makes it so special, so meaningful for the girls and indeed for everyone here (counselors, adventure guides, kitchen and maintenance staff alike), is the strong sense of community we all enjoy. It’s a really cool thing to experience. As we all share so much together- eating, playing, making, singing, the outdoor environment, even the weather -we grow closer everyday. Combine that full-time shared experience with non-stop fun activities and events led by caring, admirable role models, and mix in time for heartfelt conversations with people who are relaxed and being their “true selves,” and our recipe for community takes shape. It’s this sense of community- inclusive, noncompetitive, caring, compassionate and kind- that forms the core of Rockbrook’s philosophy. And there is real, significant power in this kind of community; experiencing it teaches us how to be positive and brings out our best. So when your daughter returns home after camp talking about her friends and how much fun she had, you’ll also know why she’s feeling so good about herself, is a better communicator, and is more positive and responsible. Rockbrook has become her community, her camp.
Katie’s Surprise Muffins
Have you heard about the freshly baked muffins that Katie, our awesome baker, makes for us each day? Between the first and second activity periods each morning, Katie surprises the camp with a different flavor of muffins, and she’s not shy about trying unique, almost off-the-wall varieties. Today for example, she presented Blackberry Mint with Chocolate sprinkles. Earlier in the week, she made Pumpkin Chocolate Chip, and Banana Streusel flavors to balance more traditional muffins like Blueberry and Lemon. It’s no wonder that “Muffin Break” is a favorite time of the day.
Down at the rifle range, the girls have been blasting the black through stacks of paper targets. With coaching from Leah, Deanna and Cliff, and now with two new, perfectly sighted Marlin rifles, there are very excited young marksmen down there shooting. Some of the girls have been scoring in the 40s (a bullseye is 10 points and 5 bullets are shot per target), proud of their developing riflery skills.
At the Rockbrook equestrian center, there are girls learning to walk, trot, canter and jump their horses, sharpening their horseback riding skills everyday. For both the complete beginners and the more advanced riders, there are just the right lessons, horses and instructors ready to go. The recent sunny, dry weather has made it ideal for the horseback riding team to keep everyone involved riding, and caring for the horses during the “Stable Club” meetings.
All-Girls Dance Party Freedom
One way to make a dance party fun is to encourage dressing up, but perhaps surprisingly, it can be even more fun if it’s a girls only affair. That’s exactly what we did tonight when our friend “DJ Dawg” Marcus came over to mix music for us in the gym for a costume dance party. With no boys around, with nobody to scrutinize or be scrutinized by, the girls can dress a little sillier, truly cut loose on the dance floor, and scream as loud as they want when their favorite song starts. All girls means all smiles and no nerves. It means dancing simply for the pure joy of it. This kind of dance is a great way to learn dance moves too- how to whip your hair, “Cha Cha Slide,” and shake it all over, hands in the air. By the end of the night, we were all a little hot and sweaty, but felt good having had this much fun together.
