More Wisdom From KI

Jolly: HELLO CR I’m back! If you followed last time when we were talking with KI she mentioned something about helping our youngest campers at Robindel. A lot of campers are nervous when camp is getting ready to start – that duality of being excited and nervous at the same time…You can feel two things at once: be excited and be really nervous and actually cry, and sometimes kids will say that they don’t want to go to camp anymore which can be confusing for parents. You’ve done some amazing things to help this. One thing that I remember you did is that you helped someone by meeting them in person…

KI: Knowing that sometimes familiarity helps anyone, no matter the age…The opportunity to get to see that person, to talk with them and start being able to trust that person through conversations…being sincere and letting that person know, even before they get to camp, that we care about their experience…we care about them as a person…we care about what kind of summer they are going to have…and, we care that they are going to grow. Yes, there may be some challenges and times they get nervous during the summer…maybe the first time they are going to ski or going to ropes, or getting into the water, or sometimes it can just be a new activity with new bunks, new people…letting them know that we are all here to hold their hand when they need it. And, other times when they are ready to show their independence, we say “go for it and fly, and have a great time!”

Jolly: Another thing you did is a FaceTime before camp started, which was different from meeting in person. Is that the familiarity again? That’s different because I think you were showing them camp…

KI: Sometimes before the campers come up, whether or not they have ever visited camp, it opens the door to their experience to show them what camp looks like…the lake, the buildings, maybe some people. Sometimes when they see things, they may have some questions that I can answer. It allows them the opportunity to start to feel comfortable in their new environment. Now they can start to put a picture to where they are coming and talk with someone who is going to be there and help take care of them.

Jolly: This is one of the things that KI does so well…helping to understand anxiety and worry and nervousness…they can all present themselves similarly, but I think you do a really good job of helping kids to navigate their feelings and what can help them. The same thing doesn’t help every child, but one of the things we are doing at camp is helping them find tools that will help them manage their feelings. We are talking about worry and anxiety and nervousness, but it’s also anger and sadness…it’s one of the things that I really appreciate about what you do and what camp does for kids, helping to provide those skills and giving them a space to practice.

I’m going to put a link of a video from a camper’s perspective of that first day of camp. I think it can be really helpful (even for those campers who have been at camp)…quite a few of the kids who you’ve met with are returning campers…these feelings of nervousness are completely normal. Even us as adults have these same feelings, we have maybe just had more experience with how to manage those feelings. Take a look at the video. We hope it will be helpful. I can’t promise you that KI can visit all of you, but you will get a chance to meet with her this summer…

HERE is a link to the video.