Guest post by Senior Director Joanne Kates:
The other day, 22 fifteen year old boys arrived at my cabin at 5:10 pm sharp for the annual Point Small cooking class. They had donned collared shirts to show their respect f0r the occasion (how cute!). The 22 of them did literally all the work. They set two picnic tables outside and cooked the dinner – pasta with pesto they made from scratch, Greek salad and shrimps sautéed with lemon garlic sauce, and of course steak on the BBQ. And yes, it was all delicious.
But more to the point (pun intended), who are these boys today? Are they the same boys who arrived here not a month or two ago? Lucky me, I have a great window on the Point, because Leon and I live in the Point. Yup, we’re neighbours. Since I run into them pretty much daily, and we often chat, it’s easy to “take the emotional temperature,” as we say at camp, of the Point.
At the beginning of camp we had a fair amount of distress about what our older campers had brought to camp in what we call their “invisible backpacks.” Although kids aren’t allowed phones at camp, nothing stops them from bringing the values and feelings caused by social media. It’s hard to be yourself when you’re under so much pressure, and trying too hard to live up to the unfortunate standards set on social media. And we could see it on the kids – some anxious aggression, some roughness around the edges, less of the kids just being kids that is usual at camp.
At camp we talk a lot about how to support kids to be themselves. Camp’s weekly Sharing Circles may have helped. Incredibly caring Point counsellors who share positive values about being young men probably helped too. Whatever the reason, the boys who cooked dinner in my cabin last night were different from the boys who walked in the door seven weeks ago. I was blown away by their kindness, their sweetness with each other, and how comfortable they seemed in their skin. Early in the summer, staff were worried that the boys were seeming “too cool for school” and not wanting to commit trying new things or striving for goals – which fit with a few friends who run schools telling me about the same attitude there. But yesterday while cooking, the boys were excited to tell me about all the activity awards they were getting, push trips they are training for, and new things they had learned this summer. It’s not so much the awards I care about – It’s the deciding to commit – the choosing to pick a goal, do the hard work and persevere.
In sum, the Point boys of week seven give me faith in their future. And great joy to be around. They are the best neighbours!
