Better Than Yesterday

Tonight we had a cookout on the athletic field, and it was my favorite kind of camp evening.

There is something about a cookout that I love more than almost any other meal we share together here. We are not sitting at tables. We are not waiting in the salad bar line or carrying our dishes to the window when we are done. A cookout is something different — it is loose and easy and exactly what camp is supposed to feel like. Campers spread out across the field with their food, finding their people, settling into the evening the way you do when there is nowhere else you need to be. Kids were tossing frisbees and playing soccer. There were tether ball matches, football tossing and plenty of friendly competition. There were girls sitting in circles, braiding each other’s hair, reflecting on their day and laughter — the kind of easy, unscripted laughter that only happens when you are completely comfortable with the people around you.

This is the gift of cookout. No structure, no schedule, just campers and their friends and a beautiful summer evening on Old Forge Mountain. I never want these evenings to end.

We had a great day today in cabin groups, trying new things and enjoying all the simple joys of camp. Today was not only about the sweet, easy things — and I want to take a moment to talk about something a little deeper, because I think it is one of the most important things we do here at camp. After five days of living together — sharing cabins and meals and activities and every waking hour — it is completely natural that hurt feelings start to surface. Toes got stepped on. Some things were said or done that needed to be addressed. This does not mean things are bad. In fact, in many ways, it is a sign that things are going exactly right.

We believe camp is one of the best classrooms in the world for learning how to navigate the hard parts of being in community with other people. And we take that responsibility seriously.

We are teaching our campers the valuable life skill of conflict resolution — how to approach a hard conversation with courage, how to truly listen when someone shares how they feel, how to extend GRACE to a friend who has made a mistake, and how to receive that grace in return. None of us are perfect. Every single person on this mountain — camper, counselor, and director alike — is going to have a moment where they fall short. What matters is what we do next. Do we hold onto the hurt, or do we lean into forgiveness? Do we walk away, or do we do the brave, hard work of working it through?

At camp, we choose to work through it. We believe that the cabin is a family, and families stick together, communicate honestly, and come out the other side closer than they were before. We call this a cabin talk — sitting down together, sharing how you’re feelings, and then genuinely moving forward. When I see cabins working through their differences and coming through it stronger, I am filled with so much pride. These kids are growing in ways that go so far beyond any activity on a schedule.

Every morning at Reflect at the Rock, we close with the same words. We say them together, all of camp:

Those words are not just something we say. They are something we try to live. And today — with all its joy and all its growth, the cookout laughter and the hard conversations — felt like exactly that. A day we tried to make better than the one before.

And honestly…I cannot wait to see how good tomorrow is going to be.

Favorite Details of the Day

• Reflect at the Rock: This morning Ben, our Intermediate Boys Division Head, talked to us about teamwork. Teamwork is where individual strength becomes community power. At Camp Highlander, we believe that the greatest victories — on the field and in life — are the ones we celebrate together.
• Weather: We had another beautiful, sunny day on Old Forge Mountain. We are so grateful!
• Meals: Breakfast was bagels, cream cheese, scrambled eggs, sausage patties, fruit, yogurt and granola bar. For lunch we had quesadillas - chicken or cheese, with homemade guacamole, chips, a salad and sandwich bar. Dinner was a cookout on the athletic field - hamburgers, hot dogs, pasta salad, potato chips, cold watermelon and chocolate chip cookies.
• Evening Program: Tonight’s EP was Battle of the Bunks. Top Bunks vs. Bottom Bunks on camp competed in various competitions around camp. From belly flops to rope burning, each event was a nail biter to the very end. It was a super fun night!