MY CAMP EXPERIENCE
Before I even went to camp, Wah-Nee was a part of my life because my older brothers attended there for years. Day in and day out, they would constantly tell stories about their summers and I was jealous that I could not contribute to their conversations. At the age of nine, I was finally allowed to experience the magic of Wah-Nee. On June 28, 2005, I waved my parents goodbye from the coach bus as I departed for my summer home. I did not shed a tear as I caressed Sam, my crying home, soon-to-be camp, friend.
Cheers, hugs, and smiles greeted me as I stepped off of the coach bus. I instantly fell in love with the place. I was placed in a bunk with Sam (thank god) and four girls who were already best friends because they were at camp the previous summer. I felt intimidated by their deep friendship and knowledge of what camp was like. As the days progressed, however, they welcomed me with open arms and I began to really like them. Around camp I was known as “little Sirotkin.” I had no idea how famous my oldest brother Danny was. He led a cheer about bananas in front of the whole camp on a regular basis. Everyone knew who he was and I felt cool to be his little sister. The following summer, I did not hide in Danny’s shadow. I introduced a pizza cheer to camp and became “Wah-Nee famous” too.
With each summer came new privileges and as a result, my friendships grew stronger and my love for camp deepened. I began to live and breathe for Wah-Nee. There’s something about the atmosphere that can make me smile just by thinking about it. It is the one place in the world that allows me to truly be myself and not feel judged by my peers. Wah-Nee has shaped me into the best version of myself.
This past summer, I was given the opportunity to be a counselor. I gladly accepted the job, but feared not living with my best friends for the first time. How was an eighteen-year-old like me expected to make twenty girls have the best summer of their lives? When I met my campers, my fears faded away. It was my time to pay it forward: to teach my campers everything that my counselors taught me. By being a counselor, I was able to see camp from a new perspective and understand all of the work that is put in to making camp a special place.
This upcoming summer will be my eleventh summer at Wah-Nee. To be honest, I do not even think that it will be my last. Why in the world would I give up the place that makes me the happiest? I have the rest of my life to find a “real” job and I should embrace the time when I am young.
Wah-Nee till I die.
Cheers, hugs, and smiles greeted me as I stepped off of the coach bus. I instantly fell in love with the place. I was placed in a bunk with Sam (thank god) and four girls who were already best friends because they were at camp the previous summer. I felt intimidated by their deep friendship and knowledge of what camp was like. As the days progressed, however, they welcomed me with open arms and I began to really like them. Around camp I was known as “little Sirotkin.” I had no idea how famous my oldest brother Danny was. He led a cheer about bananas in front of the whole camp on a regular basis. Everyone knew who he was and I felt cool to be his little sister. The following summer, I did not hide in Danny’s shadow. I introduced a pizza cheer to camp and became “Wah-Nee famous” too.
With each summer came new privileges and as a result, my friendships grew stronger and my love for camp deepened. I began to live and breathe for Wah-Nee. There’s something about the atmosphere that can make me smile just by thinking about it. It is the one place in the world that allows me to truly be myself and not feel judged by my peers. Wah-Nee has shaped me into the best version of myself.
This past summer, I was given the opportunity to be a counselor. I gladly accepted the job, but feared not living with my best friends for the first time. How was an eighteen-year-old like me expected to make twenty girls have the best summer of their lives? When I met my campers, my fears faded away. It was my time to pay it forward: to teach my campers everything that my counselors taught me. By being a counselor, I was able to see camp from a new perspective and understand all of the work that is put in to making camp a special place.
This upcoming summer will be my eleventh summer at Wah-Nee. To be honest, I do not even think that it will be my last. Why in the world would I give up the place that makes me the happiest? I have the rest of my life to find a “real” job and I should embrace the time when I am young.
Wah-Nee till I die.