Night Moves
**Disclaimer**
I could write pages upon pages about my summer and all of the amazing experiences that I had, but anyone that has ever been to camp will understand that unless you were there- unless you lived it, you won’t fully get it. It’s this weird place where one week feels like a lifetime, and people you never knew are your best friends overnight. No amount of writing can put camp into words. It’s one of those things that, you HAD to be there for.
But I will do my best.
…
(Taken directly from my journal)
“February 25 2021
…So many new exciting developments! I’m hopefully going to be working this summer at Camp White Pine as a nurse!…”
I didn’t know it then, but my summer as a camp nurse at Camp White Pine would become one of the best summers of my life.
In February of 2021, I was doing my clinical placement in Halifax, worrying about passing my HESI exam and where I’d be living in the months to come. After graduation, I had no plans other than studying for my nursing licensing exam and find a job- easier said than done.
Everyone in my class was starting to hear about jobs in the hospital, or they were applying for jobs where they were already doing their placements. While I was applying to do the same, it had always been a goal of mine to work at a summer camp.
I went to summer camp for most of my childhood. The memories and friendships from when I went to camp are still a part of my life today. Unfortunately, I never had the full-circle moment of attending camp and then graduating to staff. But I always wanted to, so, I decided that if I could work at a camp this summer (COVID pending), I would.
This would be my “last official” summer before I needed to start my career-
It was now or never.
Imagine my surprise when I got an email to my StFX account from a camp in Ontario looking for nurses/nursing students to work for the summer. I filled out the application as soon as I finished reading the email and by 1:00 pm I was meeting with Jen O, the Administrative Director of the camp.
2 months, working with 3 other nurses.
The camp would be a bubble, with COVID testing and easing of restrictions throughout the summer, pending negative tests.
Water skiing, wake surfing, pottery, bonfires, socials and a camp across the lake where the staff could spend their days off.
A summer paradise.
It didn’t take much to convince me. I had never been more excited for summer. At the time, the only thing that was worrisome was COVID. When I agreed to work for Camp White Pine, summer camps did not yet have the green light to run, so it was a waiting game. Cases were rising and falling and the uncertainty of camps running was a gamble.
I was all in, and it paid off.
Thanks to Dana Kronick, one of the Camp Directors at CWP, summer camps were a GO! Which meant packing up my car to head back home to Ontario for the summer I had always wanted.
Fast forward to June, driving up the long rollercoaster road to Camp White Pine in my Kia Soul; my heart pounding against my chest. Even with the anxiety of working at a new place, with complete strangers, I knew I was making the right decision.
It was a choice I never doubted.
I drove up to the pottery building with the bright red Live Love Laugh Learn on the front, parked my car and met Jeremy, head of Kiwi’s (the youngest campers) who gave me a COVID test and pointed me in the direction of the infirmary (aka my home for the summer).
Around me, people were greeting their friends that they’d known for years and I tried to keep my cool and tell myself that I would make friends too.
First, I met Emily.
Emily
Emily was one of four nurses I had the pleasure of working with this summer. Meeting her was a relief. She was bubbly and kind and we bonded over Ed Sheeran and our love of Noah Kahan. We stuck together like glue.
Rachel
Then came Rachel. Rachel arrived that day as well, but later into the afternoon, in the pouring rain. She was quiet at first, but once she became comfortable with us, she was the life of the party. Full of energy and spunk, and always making us laugh.
The next day Meghan arrived. Meghan had been at Camp White Pine before, while the rest of us were completely new. I think it’s safe to say that we owe Meghan our lives for all of the help and guidance she gave us during pre-camp, because without her we would have been lost. Meghan was compassionate and witty and knew the answer to anything and everything. She lit up a room and never failed to brighten our days. She truly was our north star during the summer.
Pre-camp was spent unpacking boxes upon boxes and settling into our new lives. Camp was divided into cohorts for cabins and tables and masks were worn inside buildings with people who were not a part of your cohort (Ex 1: dining hall = masks. Ex 2: At the infirmary with only nurses = no mask because nurses were a cohort). Hand sanitizers were on every table, wall, surface… you name it. And testing was done before camp, on arrival and throughout the summer. All Negative!
I’ll remember pre-camp for its evenings at Staff Rec with Josh Bailey. Josh Bailey, who may just be the funniest human being on the planet. Every evening the staff would meet at Staff Lounge at 10:30 for Staff Rec, where we would have snack (full meal) and an event of some sort. Josh Bailey would create these videos and monologues and characters for our entertainment every evening. It was the hardest I’d laughed in a long time and I looked forward to it every day because of him, knowing that at the end of the evenings my abs would be in agony and I’d be smiling ear to ear.
June 26th was the first of many TownNights. In a COVID-less world, the camp would bus staff into town to a bar to have a night full of dancing, laughter, drinking (if you are of age) and fun. However, due to our bubble and on account of the virus, TownNights were spent at Towhee, the camp across the lake.
The camp strung up lights and set up DJ Grunny for a night of pure joy. After being inside and isolated for so long, being able to dance outside with people felt like a gift from God. It was a night where people mingled and cheered and started friendships. For me, it was a night that I will never forget, staying up until the sun rose over the ski docks then hitting the pillow only to start the big day of COVID testing Staff!
That’s how I met Iona. Iona and I were paired together to stand at our station while staff lined up in their fancy cars (and I mean FANCY- think of the nicest cars you can think of, they were there) to roll down their windows and receive a COVID test. We spent the afternoon baking in the heat, swatting mosquitoes and bonding over our hangovers. I didn’t know it then, but Iona would become one of my closest friends at camp, her and her fantastic Scottish accent, huge heart and witty humour.
Iona
On July 2nd, the campers arrived. I have never seen so much joy and love in one afternoon as friends greeted each other after years of separation. Honestly, watching friends hug, HUG, one of the most basic human instincts, that we have been so deprived of because of COVID, was one of the most wholesome things to witness. Friends cried tears of joy and jumped with laughter knowing that they were reunited at last, in a place where they could call home for the summer.
What was once a quiet camp, was now buzzing with children- exactly as it should be. The dining hall was indoor/outdoor due to COVID restrictions and capacities and we ate with our cohorts. The first night meal- chicken wings (gluten-free) were delicious! And became a staple throughout the summer. Meals began with a prayer, which most days took what felt like hours to get through because of kids racing to get their dinner trays before the prayer had ended- causing Bailey or Greener to start all over again.
Meals were chaos. Children dancing on tables, hands fumbling for tongs at the salad bar and staff balancing dishes while dodging rambunctious campers. It was beautiful. The energy, the community, it was as if COVID didn’t exist and things were normal again…
Camp was a complete escape from reality. It was our own COVID-free bubble. And with the limited internet and phone usage, it was the perfect place to unplug and disconnect from the world.
While at camp, I had one main goal- to be present. And I feel like I achieved that goal. If I needed wifi, I would use the handy-dandy Lenovo computer in the infirmary, but really I never used my phone. I was off the grid and the silence was blissful. I wasn’t swarmed by news of rising COVID cases or riots. I knew nothing about vaccination updates, global affairs or what celebrity relationship was trending. All I knew was Nosh was at 3:45, Thursdays were croissants for breakfast, Saturday was sleep in and Sunday was Sing-Song.
Around the second week of camp, Kristina arrived and our team was complete. Kristina was brave for arriving when she did, because one camp day is equivalent to 1 week in the real world, so she had missed a lot and so many connections were already made. But she thrived at camp and she became my rock, my biggest supporter and she was always down for an adventure (plus she put up with all of my witchy weirdness).
Kristina
We spent two months in a completely different place with completely different people. It was two months of early mornings and late nights interrupted by the sound of the doorbell. Lazy afternoon breaks on the ski docks tanning or catching a ride in the boat to watch in awe of the talented skiers/boarders and insane bare footers.
Most days the weather was cold and rainy, but it didn’t stop us from living every day to the fullest. On the rainy days we would play guitar, huddled in my bed, singing Yellow at the top of our lungs, or head to Pottery to make a mug and visit the beautiful and hilarious Abbie.
On the days that the sun came out, camp came to life again. Children ran, swam and created memories… and so did we. When we weren’t in the infirmary we were able to join in on the fun- whether that be swimming, doing ropes courses, going to glass or wood down on Pine Street, or just laying on the docks and soaking it all in.
It was the summer of dirty dancing and night moves.
Summer evenings spent playing guitar on the docks, watching the vibrant sunsets and counting falling stars as they shot across the sky that was painted like scattered diamonds. It was the smell of campfires and the sound of children singing Country Road in unison. How campers never failed to put a smile on your face, and how they got the chance to be kids again for the summer. It was the summer of friendships and taking chances. New beginnings and bittersweet ends. It was the summer of early morning sunrises and late-night swims at the ski docks.
Camp was a place where the sun never really set, at night so many things came to life. From TownNights to Staff Recs, All Day activities to Carnivals in the middle of a field. It was when friends had the time to unwind and hangout, laugh, share stories and live a little.
My favourite nightly activity, was a tradition that I learned from my own summer camp. At the end of every day before we would go to sleep our counsellors would ask us what our Rose, Bud and Thorn were.
Rose- The best part of our day.
Thorn- a part of the day that maybe wasn’t the greatest.
Bud- what we were looking forward to tomorrow.
I would ask my friends at the end of the day, “what was your Rose, Bud and Thorn?” And we would all take a moment and reflect…And on the last night of camp, surrounded by friends at the swim docks, we sat and reminisced of the summer that passed.
Rose Buds and Thorns of the Summer of 2021
Roses
This summer was filled with so many incredible moments that it is impossible to choose just one. My biggest rose were the people I met. I made friends with people from all around the world, people with some of the biggest hearts, contagious laughs, and adventurous attitudes I’ve ever come across.
There were people that I met from day one that I knew I was meant to meet, and people who I only met as camp was ending, and shared some of my favourite experiences with.
I learned a lot from these people- I learned to bake with Farid and how to face my fears and play guitar with Justin. How to take the high road, open my heart, laugh at my faults and make a kick-ass mug with Abbie. I learned to trust and enjoy the little moments while Sailing with Harold (waffle), or how people like Epi, a quiet man of few words, can make your day just by saying hello. Iona and Jack taught me about loyalty and friendship. Emily, Rachel, Kristina and Meghan showed me how to live a little and love a lot. And I showed them how the best things in life are outside of your comfort zone.
I loved my summer sunsets spent with Kristina on the docks with my guitar, or when we watched a thunderstorm roll through camp while listening to Night Moves by Bob Segar. I’ll cherish the canoe paddles to Towhee and the days off spent in the sand playing volleyball with Chalky and friends. When I think about summer, I’ll think about late night walks to the ski docks with Sebastian, and watching the stars with the nurses; making wishes on falling stars. Or how I looked forward to Sunday Sing Song EVERY WEEK, and how happy I was when Adam and Dana asked if I’d like to play guitar- it was my Camp Rock Moment.
My rose was running the road after a long day with Emily, Rachel and Kristina and motivating them, even when we were exhausted. Or how we danced the night away on TownNights, and at Dancing with the Staff.
Thorns
Every rose has its thorns… but I feel like a thorn has to be something especially bad for it to earn that title. And of course, with any summer spent at camp, there is drama, but none of the drama this summer was thorn worthy to me. If anything, my thorn was that I didn’t get to spend enough time with Meghan. She had to leave too soon and too suddenly and I wish we had had more time with her. She had so much to offer in terms of guidance and wisdom, and I only wish we had been able to learn from her and make more memories with her.
Buds
Like all great things, camp had to come to an end. Saying goodbye to the friends I had made was harder than I had ever expected. But, I was saying goodbye to more than just the people, I was saying goodbye to a world where I didn’t need to worry about COVID. A world where I didn’t look at my phone 24/7, where the negative news couldn’t reach me and where everyone, including staff, could be free to be themselves and be kids again. Leaving the bubble and going back into the real world, honestly has taken some getting used to.
I miss the days where I could walk out my front door and jump in the lake. Or see Farhid with a plate full of gluten-free chocolate croissants. Or sit by the fire with my friends.
But, even though camp has ended, I have a lot to look forward to.
On that note, my buds are:
I am about to start my job as a NICU Nurse in Halifax!!
I will get to spend time with my family and see my friends that I haven’t seen in so long
Going back to camp next summer ;)
In closing, I want to say Thank You, to Adam, Dana and Jen for all of their hardwork this summer.
For giving us all the opportunity to come to camp and have these incredible experiences and to unplug and recharge from the craziness that is our world.
Thank You for the hours you sacrificed to give us an unforgettable summer, through all the stress and late nights, you gave the gift of life back to the campers and that is a priceless thing.
