if you’ve spoken to me for more than five minutes you know that i spend my summers as a counselor at a little camp in my hometown in south carolina.
in 2015 i was apart of the leadership in training program where i learned to care for kids and what makes a good counselor.
in 2016 i was a junior counselor, meaning i stayed in the tent with the kids and watched as the counselor did her thing and led by example.
the summer of 2017 I was offered the job of counselor. I was overjoyed and overwhelmed all at the same time. It’s on e of those things you can prepare for all day long, but you never know what’s really going to happen. kids are unpredictable and so is the great outdoors. The only way to explain that is you have to be ready for BUGS BUGS BUGS!! you never know how many little creepy crawlies there are into you get into the thick of it. It’s one of those things that you don’t really believe until you see and pretty much just have to get used to. Ten girls screaming over a mosquito is a real thing. Seriously.
my experience over this past summer changed me for the better. nothing boosts your confidence more than being entrusted with children’s lives and totally rocking it. the amount of love you feel when a camper squeezes you tight and tells you you’re her favorite counselor is unmeasurable. these girls become your little sisters. And honestly, knowing that your actions impacts their lives is such a wake-up call. Being a counselor doesn’t just mean you tell them when to change into their bathing suits and read them stories at night. You are these girls’ advocate. You’re their mother. Their mentor. Their friend.
