The general perception by most is that Monday is the most disliked day of the week. Regardless of your personal opinion on this observation, this is not the case at Camp Timberlake, especially on this specific Monday. Why, you might ask? Well, since Friday of last week, camp has been covered by a constant blanket of rain, dumping large amounts of precipitation upon these boys. That was until today, when the skies decided to take a break just long enough for the fellas to get some much needed activity time. The morning started off with a filling breakfast of circle eggs, sausage, cheese, and biscuits, followed by the classic morning yell, and a touching chapel by Director Adam Boyd. Cabin cleanup quickly ensued, as it has been a dogfight to see which cabin has the most consistent and efficient cleaning skills. As a proud counselor in the Cabin of Stompers Knob, it was truly wonderful to enjoy the success of a perfect 10.0 that our Stompers boys received. As the campers transitioned from cleaning mode to activity mode, much enthusiasm and anticipation was clearly evident thanks to the rain delaying many activities in the previous days. In Rocketry, many worked furiously in hopes of having their rockets completed for the free time launch occurring after lunch. One of the requirements to receive or move up in a bar (bronze, silver, or gold) is for your rocket to launch correctly. In Pottery, the guys spent time glossing and preparing their pieces of artwork to be casted and solidified. In Paintball, Ben A, Xavier J, and Jackson, all received their Bronze for showing both immense amounts of courage and leadership during their matches. As second period activities finished out, many of the boys quickly made their way down to the dining hall as word had spread that pizza was on the menu. Just when they thought lunch couldn’t get any better, BOOM, chocolate cookies for desert! It should therefore come as no surprise that the boys were looking forward to rest time after a solid lunch like that. With thirty minutes to digest, the boys were back at it again with some open free time activities. As mentioned before, the Timberlake rocket scientists showed off their building skills with shooting off during free time. Meanwhile, the camp climbers devoted their free time at the Traverse Wall in hopes of gaining more bars. Both Jared C. and JB G. made big steps forward in obtaining the coveted bars. Finally, over at Lake Doris, kayaking was open for the fellas to work on refining their t-rescues, rolls, and wet exits. Both Zeb H. and Brian S, with a counselor’s supervision, managed to get their rolls for the first time. Bailey M. was able to nab his offside roll, while Ty was able to utilize the free time to perfect his t-rescue. Followed by the hour and a half free time, the activities rolled on. In wrestling, Zeb H, Damian U, and Ian C all learned and accomplished their Double Leg Takedowns, showing much skill in doing so. At the Tennis courts, Mike P. won a game of “Jail” by hitting the ball over the net without having it caught. In Airsoft, Hank H. and Brandon B. both proved themselves for a Bronze bar promotion as they completely dominated in the games that they participated in. Clearly much was accomplished in the activities provided to the campers today, thus many smiling faces were to be found during dinner time as the boys “carbo loaded” on a healthy meal of spaghetti, meatballs, vegetables, and breadsticks. As the filling meal finished up, the announcement was made that tonight’s evening activity would be “Stealing Skins.” Essentially this game involves the each tribe attempting to protect their “skins” at their base while attempting to steal the other tribe’s skins. The plot twist in this evening event is that the counselors are also their own team facing off against both the Seminole and Iroquois, which just adds to the excitement. Following this event, the cabins will break off to have more bonding time through a various post evening activities. And so with a solid Monday down in the books, it’s clear that camp was once again at its best. While smiles were flowing, the beautiful thing about today and the days to come, are the relationships that are building and growing. In a two-week span at camp, many of the camper’s are spending that first week becoming acquainted and comfortable with the surroundings of camp life. But once you roll into that second week (as we currently are in) the results begin to become more evident. And that is why Camp Timberlake is great. Through working together, through playing together, through doing life together and so on, the boys slowly begin to grow. As a counselor, the thing worth more than any paycheck is watching a camper grow in some way, shape, or form. Growth at camp has many different shapes and sizes, but it’s here folks. I promise you that.

David Friedrichs

Stompers Knob Counselor