Say cheese, mountain biking!
Hello all! This is Miss Melody, singing sweet praises that camp has finally started and everyone is getting back into the rockin’ and rollin’ swing of things.
Last night we had our very special Pine Grove ceremony. It was so touching to see this beautiful community walk in silent reverence to our mother nature. There was hand holdin’ and arm lockin’ and my oh my, you could feel the love in the air! How amazing it is when you get silent and can hear the birds singing, the wind blowing through the grasses, and the crackling of the flaming torch held by one of our very own tipi counselors as she led us up to the campfire in the woods ahead. Sitting on tree stumps, we listened to inspiring poems, danced to silly songs, sang “call and response” songs and enjoyed the company of others in the process.
Lower Carriage House (LCH) had us all up out of our seats, sticking our tongues out and squishing our faces to pretend we are jellyfish-how funny the scene looked!
Wombles sang a touching song about loving someone more than pearly shells,
Loons had us all singing about sharks,
Paquatahnee showed us what a happy llama and totally rad llama look like in their llama song,
Atlantis sang a classic song that warned us of the repercussions of using a “rickadandoo” when going on an odyssey,
Treasure Island had us all get in touch with our inner warrior with a war chant! Further, Mckenzie, one of the Tipi counselors, had us sing a beautiful “call and response” song that had us all ruminate on how we are open and ready for all that is to come this summer.
Camelot had us all singing a funny song about how HVC helps us to know what we want to be when we grow up (a farmer! come on Bessy give, the baby’s gotta live!!),
Gimme Shelter had us all making silly noises,
Shangri La and Down Under both did their own version of “When the Lion Sleeps Tonight.”
Valhalla sang the beautiful melody of “Down by the Bay,”
Haley’s Comet sang a horse song (love to see their passion for horses!),
Forbidden Planet sang their “Annoying Song” that was more funny than annoying (I must admit),
Taj Mahal sang the touching song, “Wagon Wheel,”
and Gabe and Peter, one of our pro-staff, had us singing the classic “Hey Oh Bo Diddly Bop” in which we all wanted to get back to our block!
Phew! Now if that’s not the longest list of fun you have ever seen, I don’t know what is!
On another note, today is the…wait for it…FIRST DAY OF CLASSES. That’s right, folks, today is THE day, the BIG day in which we finally get to share our fun plans that we have been working so hard on with the campers. I loved to see all of the smiling faces as campers shared with one another their class schedules for the next two weeks. We saw lots of riding boots and sun-screened bodies with towels over their shoulders. We saw sneakers for running and long pants for glass bead making. I want to take all of the classes! Attached are some photos of this first-day fun!
In other news…today the Hidden Valley Adventures (HVA) crew starts their first journey! They will be paddling 65 miles on the St Croix River. Crossing over into Canada, I hope they bring back some good ole Canadian bacon (Ham?) and some fresh maple syrup. Will they see any Moose? Will they all become Toronto Maple Leaf hockey fans? We will just have to wait and see!
Tonight is Cabin Night, a fun evening program in which cabins get to know one another better by participating in the activities their counselors have planned for them. The activities are a surprise, so I can’t spill the beans just yet…but I will keep you guys posted! Can’t wait!!
May your day be filled with an abundance of joy,
Miss Melody