We're In the Homestretch

It’s hard to believe that it’s already Thursday! So often, the first few days of camp week go by slowly and it feels like camp will last forever (in a good way!). Then we hit Thursday and start to wonder how the week is going by so fast! How is it already Thursday?!?!

(The view of Lake Ossipee during Morning Watch today)

Our day started with another delicious breakfast (the Camp Cody kitchen staff takes such good care of us!): French toast sticks, breakfast sausage, and fruit. After morning watch and morning meeting, we made our way to morning group. The “Once Upon a Camp” theme we explored today was romance. Or as the campers call it, today was “hot and steamy Thursday.” We talked about romantic relationships, friendships, relationships with our families, and relationships with ourselves. It was a great opportunity for our teens to talk about healthy and unhealthy relationship dynamics and to share with each other how to navigate forming relationships in the age of social media.

We headed to lunch to discover a camp-wide favorite on the menu: pizza paninis! They’re a mashup of garlic bread, grilled cheese, and pizza. Totally delicious! We also had French fries, Caesar salad, and Hoodsies. Spree time was short today in order to give enough time for our afternoon program. Today was the annual and always highly-anticipated event: cabin wars! The weather was sunny and warm (but not too hot) — it was a perfect day for this camp-wide competition. After fierce rounds of battle, the final relay was between Cherokee (8^th grade boys) and Pawnee (senior boys). It was a close one! The 8^th grade boys ran faster for the sponge bucket relay, but they didn’t have the experience of the senior boys, who knew how to use the sponges to maximize the amount of water they transported from bucket to bucket. So in the end, the cabin wars trophy went to (drumroll please…) Pawnee. Go senior boys! And both teams showed great sportsmanship with a spontaneous handshake line after the final whistle.

(A view of the field during cabin wars)

Everyone needed some time to clean-up from cabin wars before going to dinner (BBQ chicken, mashed potatoes, and corn). Dinner flowed right into chapel (led by the 7^th and 8^th grade classes), and then we headed out onto the field for our evening activity — the variety show. The variety show contains a wide variety (haha!) of acts: singing, playing instruments, dancing, skits. The campers did an amazing job tonight, and it was beautiful to see how people supported and encouraged each camper who was brave enough to step on stage in front of 500 people to perform.

After the variety show came to an end, we moved over to the council ring for vespers and the Lord’s Prayer. Then we sent the junior high cabins and staff back to their cabins for bed while the senior high cabins and staff made their way to the dining hall for — PIZZA! This is a Thursday evening tradition that gives the senior high campers more of an opportunity to spend time together at the end of the week. And who doesn’t love pizza?!?! After pizza night ended, the campers headed to their cabins to get a good night’s sleep.