Summer camps are finally over and I’m exhausted and need to consider my age before I attempt to do this much next year. It ended with my favorite in Maine. Every year when my plane lands in Bangor I feel like I’m back home. I just love it up there.

I brought about one hundred ducks with me to camp. I asked Melody to loan me a pillow so I would have room in my suitcase for all of them. This year we gave medicine to campers in the cafeteria. Normally they come to the nurses cabin but due to circumstances beyond our control I did not feel this was a safe option. Anyway at breakfast the first day I brought them with me. Icy and Swiftie asked for one. I said not yet but if you two want to set them on up on the table for me that would be great. That had a lot of fun arranging them for me.

All the kids picked one out and eventually Bambi asked if he could have one. He’s one of the guy counselors who has been there for three years. He’s the one whom all the kids love and pick on non stop. So needless to say most of the counselors have one too. This idea came from Dr. Pickles who brought them to JMU camp and they were a huge hit.

At some point during the week Bambi realized how easy it is to pick on me and get me all worked up. I’m pretty sure I told him he was exactly like my husband. He came over when kids were not around and told me that I called him the hard R word. I said absolutely not, my girls banned me from using that word a long time ago. Nurse Pooh (from Texas camp this summer who I recruited to do this one with me) joins in and they attempt to punk me. I said wrong answer I called you gay. That shut him up because he has been dating Moose (the awesome girl who has ran camp the past three years) for probably that long. I said and by the way in my generation gay means stupid. For crying out loud don’t mess with Nurse Red. He teased and tormented me until I threatened to take his duck back.

The night before the talent show Swiftie asked if she could use the rest of the ducks for the talent show. I said yes of course. She is the sweetest and most kind hearted kid I have ever met. She even wrote me a warm and fuzzy and said she enjoyed watching me make friendship bracelets. So the talent show comes and she brings Bambi, Yoshi and Icy up on stage with her. I can’t really hear what they are saying but the next thing I know Swiftie and Icy are throwing ducks at Bambi and Yoshi. Yoshi is another incredible male counselor. He is currently working on his masters in something that is so foreign to me (obviously not medical) that I couldn’t even say what it was. He is planning to get his PhD. He is actually part of a different Kesem but has come to Maine for three years to help fill guy counselor spots. He is wearing his Yoshi costume which is so cute. Anyway the next thing I know everyone is throwing ducks around. The audience is throwing them at the four of them and they are throwing them back. It was controlled chaos and since no one was hurt and nothing was broken it didn’t happen.

Paper plate awards are one of my favorite part of camp. Everyone gets one and the ones for the kids are usually spot on. As usual so was mine.

I cracked up laughing and will remember it forever.

Some of the camps do this thing that goes

Do you want to buy a duck?

A what?

A duck.

Does it quack?

Yes.

This gets repeated down the line like telephone. I can’t remember exactly how it ends but the kids love it. I find it to be totally obnoxious but if they enjoy it, then I willingly participate.

I’m glad the summer is over. It was a hard one for me but out of difficulty growth occurs. I’m not sure I needed this but maybe in the future it will become clear.

Mole Moral ~ When kindness shows up, great things happen.