If Monday lasts a month, Tuesday lasts about five seconds. One second I was rolling out of bed excited for day two and now suddenly it’s over. The hours flew by, filled with baseball and laughter and memories.
Tuesday is team day; the boys find out whether they’re on red or blue and receive their uniform. This year there were a few campers who were disappointed to be “split up” from boys on the other team, and chants of “PUR-PLE TEAM” echoed throughout the day. It just goes to show that the kids are embracing the idea that we are one.
One of my favorite parts of camp happens on Tuesday- the fence. Each boy gets to put his handprint in his team color and his name on a board. Once the paint is dry, the teams hang their boards on the home run fence, a permanent statement that they were here. Returning campers eagerly pointed out their handprints from previous years, excitedly recalling memories from years past. Day two is also picture day; each kid gets his picture taken with his own coach, his team’s coach, and the camp grandparents. The boys take home a photo album of pictures at the end of the week.
Fence posts and pictures are physical reminders of the campers, proof that they were here, that something changed, but I think these boys make their mark in lots of other ways as well. We had some baby chicks visit today, and the kids couldn’t have been holding them for ten seconds before each one had a name. At one point I was playing a made up game with a camper and a coach. As more boys joined in, the camper explained how to play, and everyone accepted it. Additional rules were added as more kids came up with ideas.
Run Home Camp obviously leaves its mark on the campers; everyone young enough is already talking about coming back next year. I think the boys leave their mark on us as well. I can’t imagine ever forgetting the secret handshake one kid taught me today or the time the boy playing shortstop single handedly made a double play in this year’s first red versus blue game. Many of these campers don’t have a lot of people taking the time to listen to them, but when we stop to see it, we discover that these sixteen boys are some of the funniest, craziest, most creative kids I know. They’ve already made a lasting impression on me, and I’m sure the rest of the staff would say the same.
