Dear Treetops Families,
This week at Treetops, campers dug deeply into their summer experience. Any last remnants of shyness have been cast aside and children are embracing new experiences with arms wide open and grins from ear to ear. Campers, now more sure of themselves, their growing interests, and expanding abilities are reaching out and seeking new opportunities. Campers who once stuck to familiar activities on campus are clamoring to go out on trips; those once timid to sing at council performed proudly at the talent show.
At Treetops, we strive to create and keep a child’s world, a place where kids can be kids, unhurried, free from alarms urging them on to the next thing, a space without noisy screens. We want children to be here, to be present, to enjoy the moment without the many distractions that so often take center stage. Here, children can immerse themselves fully in an activity: throwing a pot on the outdoor kickwheel in Senior Camp serenaded by the song of the warblers in the nearby Forest Garden; harvesting raspberries in the Children’s Garden amid the hum of grateful honeybees—an occasional sampling of the harvest, here and there—soon to be made into a batch of raspberry popsicles to help keep cool on a hot summer day; or weaving on the table loom, campers quietly chattering amongst themselves or even breaking into a spontaneous camp song, dreaming up what they will do with their finished craft. All throughout Camp, children are busy crafting, building, creating, and fully being—here and now.
We also provide time and space for the dreamy, the silly, the whimsical, showing children that oftentimes, it is the journey, and not the destination that truly matters. Here is where our wonderful counselors set the stage and truly shine! This week, one morning council was led by swimsuit-clad counselors announcing activities from a sinky boat that had run aground; we had our riding staff canter bare-back into council dressed in ball gowns to announce the Gymkhana, a day of various games conducted on horseback; we even saw a counselor sit upon another’s shoulders in the Dining Room to announce their upcoming hike… up Giant, of course!
Within Camp and out on trips, our campers are pushing their own boundaries, understanding more who they are, and exploring new possibilities for themselves. Campers will inevitably bring home their finished crafts: a pot they threw, trimmed, and carefully glazed – taking weeks from the first step to the finished firing; their table weaving hand sewn into a bag with which to carry their many treasures. They’ll bring home other things too, perhaps less tangible, but no less cherished: a more complete understanding of themselves, the confidence to explore new and unfamiliar terrain, and a heartfelt appreciation of the journey.