Stories to Tell

Crossroads Camp Mitton Staff 2022

"Karma! Karma! Karma!" She works my nerve. They all work my nerves. I should be handed boxing gloves and let to the freedom of a boxing ring. Why in the World did I sign up for this? "Elizabeth, are you fine?" asks the Camp Director, who awakens me from my moment of thoughtfulness. I must have had that staggered face replaying how much I would have punched the poor soul at my mercy. I smile back widely with an affirming look to assure her that this is the best day of Summer Camp I have had so far.

In 2018, if Elizabeth were told that she would one day be in the United States of America on whatever grounds, she would have cursed you for mocking her bucket list. It is not desperation or worldly lust; it is just that undying desire to travel to one of the countries you have seen on television over and over and feel like, "Yes, that is where I am supposed to be."

On the 15th of June 2022, I landed at Newark International Airport, U.S.A. After months of watching border patrol shows, I was prepared to walk through these airports without difficulty. Easier said than done, huh? Leave alone in my home country, where we have two terminals at the airport, I had to run from floor to floor and board buses at these airports to make it in time for my connecting flights. After my 23-hour flight, the only thing I envied was someone in their bed. I couldn't wait to arrive at my final destination and jump into a bed. As soon as I sat in the car, the last I heard of was my fellow International staff introducing themselves.

No sooner had I drifted off into slumber than I was woken up to a signpost that read, "Welcome to Camp Mitton." A journey back to the City from the Cape had me questioning a fellow staff member if we were this far from the City. The flight fatigue robbed me of the first experience of the 2-hour drive from Boston to Cape Cod. Hardly had we settled down when we were invited for dinner. To my surprise, we were having pizza for dinner. "Okay, maybe since it's day one, they didn't get time to cook us some food." I thought to myself. You see, in African culture, when you arrive as a visitor, it is a buffet of freshly cooked hot steaming food at your disposal. Pizza for dinner was a shock that I could not comprehend with my tired head then. In a couple of days, all staff members were finally on camp, and the pieces of training in preparation for the kids arriving in a week were getting more intense each day.

At Brussels Airport

So many names to take in. At least Nagudi is a tongue twister for them; hence they will tease their minds all day and take any chance to call me out. Sometimes I hear Naguti, others fearfully utter Naguli, and once in a while, Mudiwa! Mudiwa is a transgender staff from Zimbabwe. One of the most beautiful souls I met. He also had a fair share of getting called Naguli once in a while. As a cabin counselor, you are expected to know all your campers' names by the end of the first day. I was fortunate enough to be a floater for a greater part of the camp sessions but tasked to know nearly all campers' names since I would be spending any day with them. This is where all the name games came into play. We would play these games up to the 4th day of camp. Each camp session lasted 12 days. Afterward, a whole new bunch of crazier kids would roll in, and you have to start afresh. During the first days, I wondered if I knew what I was doing with the kids. Each day passes by like the desert wind; challenges, moments of joy, excitement, laughter, fun, pain, and exhaustion. I found it weird attending a camp where all I was doing was eat, sleep, swim, watch kids, hike, bike riding, play basketball, learn American Football, bake brownies, hunt for bugs, kill spiders (especially the daddy long leg that scared the kids), dance with kids, crack daddy jokes, oh boy!

"He said I will never be good at basketball," sobs Andy.

"He pushed! I should be first in line," Ezy cries.

"Olivia and Tara did not talk to me in the morning," Lily laments.

"I want to go home," Cycy says.

"Caleb said that he will not make me a wristband," Jayda reports

This is just a pinch of the drama one has to absorb as a counselor. As a grown-up, you may get tempted to brush off such complaints. But to these kids providing a listening ear and engaging them means a lot. These small events in their lives will completely change their outlook on other life events. One evening, at the basketball court, the campers played 3x3, and the game escalated emotionally. One event led to another, and the next I saw was Andrew move hastily to Savion's ear and scream all curse words his little mind could process. He walked away angrily, just like most kids; getting their attention would take 5 - 10 screaming of their names. I finally caught up with him and sat him down. I had no better words to tell him. I added sweet salt to the injury citing all the top NBA players. "Not even Lebron James is spared from trash talking. Basketball is a trash talk game. If you can't handle the pressure, you can't handle the sport. You are going out there, apologize to your teammates for your behavior, and have a special apology for Savion. Okay." Andrew came to me nearly every day of the camp to talk about basketball! Evening time basketball was his best session. I had a lot to learn from these kids. They would drain you to zero social battery and uplift you in a second to full capacity. The crazy evening programs where we got to play mind games or challenges as cabins were lovely moments.

"Tonight," announces a member of the Leadership Team (the kids re-echo these words.)

“For evening program," - "for evening program" echoes the campers

"We are having," (someone give me drumroll)...ground shaking from thunderous drumroll.

"Shhhhhhhhhhh" immediately, the whole camp is silent that you can hear a pin drop down.

"CRAZY COUNSELOR, DRESS UP!"

"YES! YES! YES! YES! YES!"

"This will happen like this …” the Leadership team member announces.

Each day had a different evening program. This would be the day's last engagement after an activity-filled day.

At the extreme back dressed by the campers like "Material Girl" for an evening program.

Let nobody lie to you that being a counselor is a heyday job. The days when all one needed was to take space away from the craziness. Some days would get long, and the blazing summer sun did not seem to offer any justice. A hug from a fellow counselor would restore your hopes and give you the courage to push on for the day. At times a camper would ask you for a hug, and this would be that "aww" moment you have been searching for all day. The finger formation of love tossed around reminded you that you are appreciated and loved. Sometimes a smile from the youngest camper with the two front teeth taken by the tooth fairy would replenish all the electrolytes used since the morning. Growing up in a society where crying is considered a weakness, it was hard to adjust to a community where one is encouraged to express oneself while at their lowest. Kids will be kids. They will test, tease, bully, disrespect, and act up, but you have to extend all the grace you can each time. When it is overboard, disciplinary action will be called into play.

Before bed, it was insight time. At this point, you let go of the day's events and embrace the memories that can be built to make the camp safe and fun for everyone. It is during these insights that you get a better understanding of these kids. At times, these insights do reveal why a particular kid has been behaving a certain way. A made-up story about a Disney princess is enough to fill the cabin with baby snores. We live to the next day's ups and downs.

I have stories to tell. It has been an exciting summer. I can't wait to pen down my cultural shocks. Yes, pizza is a whole meal. You can have pizza for lunch or dinner.