Oh the Places You'll Go: Camp Cherith

Photo taken by Jessica Aiduk

This summer has sent me traveling to many different places. In fact, I've been quite the nomad. I haven't spent more than about a week in any one place all summer (except 3 weeks halfway around the world visiting my beautiful sister in Germany). This week and next week I find myself settling at Camp Cherith- tucked away in a small corner of Western NY near Letchworth State Park.

In a lot of ways, coming to camp is like coming home, and this summer especially, it feels really good to come home. Camp has been a staple in my life since I was about 3 years old. My sisters and I have come every summer growing up and all went through the leadership training program here and became staff members. Every year I would go about my life, I would change, I would grow, and then I would come back to camp. Its a place of reflection for me and it is a place of rest. It also happens to be where I have formed some of closest friendships of my life and have an absolute blast every year. So much of my leadership skills and lessons learned in teamwork I can trace back to this camp.

At this particular moment in time I'm excited because in about 3 hours I take a group of four high school girls into the woods for 2 days to camp out. My love of camping, hiking, fires, and nature is a gift largely fostered by my time growing up at camp- and I absolutely love paying it forward and sharing that love with the next generation. I think that the experience of good old fashioned camping is good for the soul. This trip into the woods is particularly exciting cause I will be teaching the counselors in training how to pass the experience along to all their future campers.

My role at this camp is slightly different than my role last at last weeks camp, but variety is the spice of life, right? Anyway, I'm off have some tent therapy and wonderful adventures!

"In every walk with nature one receives far more than he seeks."

John Muir

Photo taken by Jessica Aiduk

Conversations over Coffee: Linda

Conversations over Coffee posts are meant to be about a person that I have recently chilled with and learned from. I'm really excited about doing these types of posts because I really love learning things from other people. I think that people one of the most important and most lasting thing we can invest our time and energy in. And I think that every person I meet represents something new I can learn, cause every new person has different gifts, passions, and experiences than me.

Recently I am on a Mr. Rogers kick, so here is a little morsel from him:

"There is something of yourself that you leave at every meeting with another person" Mr. Rogers

Today's person is Linda. Linda is the other nurse that I am working with at music camp this week. We are spending a lot of time together, and we share all of our meals together- so we have had a lot of time to chat. I have also gotten to see her interact with all the kids, so I've learned a lot from that too.

From the funny to the serious, here are some things I've learned from Linda:

1. When working with kids you have to find a balance between recognizing their concerns and letting them know that they are gonna be fine. Case in point: the kids who come in with small cuts and act like they are pretty sure they are gonna need an amputation. Linda has a way of setting their mind at ease.

2. Most of the time our problems can be solved by going back to the basics. Kid comes in with abdominal pain and thinks his world is ending- Linda asks when the last time he went poop was. He goes to the bathroom, comes out, and is feeling better. Simple as that.

3. The mind and the body are linked more than we think. This camp is really fun, but we also have some very high strung kids who get stressed by wanting to be the best they can be while here. Linda is great at getting kids talking and uncovering the mental stresses behind their physical complaints: especially headaches and neck pains. 

4. The importance of saying hello. Linda says hello to every person she meets on the path around the college. She really doesn't appreciate the aspect of our culture that has made it okay to pass by another human being without even acknowledging their presence with a smile. I think that's great. A good reminder for everyone. I know I can get numb to it. Just like hikers, Linda always gives a friendly face to the people she meets.

Oh the Places you'll Go: Band Camp

As I said in my last post, I'm at Band Camp this week. But this is not your average band camp. This is Ithaca College Summer Music Academy. These kids are all really good at what they do, and they pay a lot of money to come here and learn from world class musicians.

This, of course, is incredibly fun for me for a few reasons. Firstly, I get to listen to their music for free... no scratch that, I get PAID to listen to their music (and give them any medication they might need). A lot of being a summer camp nurse like this is being ready and available. That also means I have quite a bit of free time where I am ready... but not needed cause everyone is happy and healthy.

Which means I have gotten to do LOTS of reading.

Which is great cause I was recently introduced to this really cool site and while exploring found this really cool list on the blog, which is what made me want to start reading this really cool book... which I just finished. Also, I discovered said cool site from this cool site- and if you are ever looking to spend some cool minutes browsing the internet or need a DJ- go there.

But anyway, the book is called A Million Miles in a Thousand Years By Donald Miller and its a great read. Its a patchwork narrative about the author's quest to live a better story and I really enjoyed it... here are a few of my favorite quotes:

“A story is based on what people think is important, so when we live a story, we are telling people around us what we think is important.”

“Here's the truth about telling stories with your life. It's going to sound like a great idea, and you're going to get excited about it, and then when it comes time to do the work, you're not going to want to do it. It's like that with writing books, and it's like that with life. People love to have lived a great story, but few people like the work it takes to make it happen. But joy costs pain.”

Also: here is a taste of the caliber of kids I'm hanging out with this week. This is a flash mob they did last year in Ithaca Commons. Boom.

Life Lessons: Chilling with Child Prodigies

"You rarely have time for everything you want in this life, so you need to make choices. And hopefully your choices can come from a deep sense of who you are" 

Mr. Rogers

The current role that I am playing is that of a Music Camp Nurse. I'm surrounded by musicians, but I'm not particularly musical. Yesterday I sat and chatted with a young girl who plays so much cello that she has tendinitis in her wrist. In case you were wondering, that is a lot of cello playing. She is gifted and passionate about her music. In our conversation she asked me a simple question that I have been pondering ever since: "Are you sad you're not musical?"

I paused and thought.

No.  

There are times when I'm jealous of other people's gifts and life paths. I wish I could sing like that. I wish I could dance like that. I wish I speak like that. I wish I could run like that. On and on goes the discontented heart. 

 But in my small moment of clarity I knew that the things I fill my life with are truly and deeply fulfilling for me. My story doesn't happen to include perfect pitch or being a child prodigy. That doesn't stop me from enjoying what other people produce with their lives and that doesn't stop me from learning to play the ukulele.

 Its all a balance right? We produce and want to try hard to produce the best stuff we can. But we recognize that everyone is gifted differently and produces different things. Don't compare. I can't be everything... so I want to cultivate myself as a purposeful something. 

So I'm rededicating my blog to that.

"Decide what to be and go be it." 

The Avett Brothers