Session 3 – Day 3: Abundant joy on Friday Night
Hi Herzl Family!
First of all Shavua Tov! Like I said to you before, the veteran campers are here and man-o-man did we feel at this Shabbat! Specifically Friday night, everyone was so eager to be in the caravan, dressed in their Shabbos whites, singing Shabbat songs and sometimes others… here comes a tangent…That’s one of those examples of where you want to look at the kids and say “hey come on guys, sing along with everybody else” and yet they’re singing some fun song that they all know (and I don’t) and you think to yourself, “Tommy, here’s a group of 14 kids, smiling, singing a song together, arm and arm, at their favorite place in the world”… Yeah, that’s a battle I’m not going to have!
The Shabbat flag songs were funny. The very present friendly rivalry between Kadima & B’Yachad nets out camp creativity and comedy at its best. That’s when I stop and think how lucky we are, not just those of us who get to work in this amazing environment, but all of us. We are in a place that invites abundant joy all around. Maybe I’m still stuck in celebration of getting to do this job, or maybe I’m stuck in being a Jewish dad who sees the gift you are giving your kid, the gift of the Jewish camp experience filtered all through the lens of fun. I have these moments so many times throughout a day.
To shore up flag circle, we do the Blessing of the Children. Every cabin gets together in a circle and the counselors sing the blessing as they hover their hands over the campers head. It’s one of the rare moments at camp where everyone is quiet, I think everyone appreciates how lucky we are and how connected we feel (chokes me up every time!)
I think I said this last year, but Friday night services are so much more interactive than the Friday night services I remember. Everyone participates because there’s always something to do. There’s always some celebration of song or prayer that has something that keeps them engaged (a dance, a hand motion, a schtick) it’s truly watching the magic work here. Its truly helping these kids be proud of who they are and celebrate the fact that there a group of proud Jews together, loving each other in song and the natural beauty all around.
Well that’s all I got for tonight folks…I got an early wakeup tomorrow as we are kicking off 3rd session 7:00 AM waterski club! But for now…
All is well, safely rest.
Thank you for sending your kid to Herzl Camp.
לילה טוב
Tommy