By Lisa David

Hot Dog. Monkey. Cheese. Noodles. Turtle. Bananas. Scoop. 

One of the best metaphors for how camp brings out your best and true self is the nicknames that our campers and staff acquire during their time here. Nicknames are acquired when one completes a significant challenge. Nicknames are acquired when a group shares a moment of such hilarity that they must embed it in their collective memory for years into the future. And nicknames are acquired as a way to demonstrate the intense and intimate connection between friends. It is one way that our campers can feel seen, heard, and valued. 

In my first year as a camper, my counselor Jyl (as in “Jyl’s office”, the communal gathering space in Girl’s Camp) gave me a nickname. It was a simplified version of my last name (Bieber): “Biebs”. But for a reserved, guarded, and shy kid, it brought out something new and exciting in me. It helped me relax, loosen up, feel familiar, as if others could easily connect to me. It made me accessible, helped ease the way into the community of camp. 

For parents, arriving on the last day to pick up their child, hearing a peer or counselor call your child by a new name may leave you conflicted: on one hand, how wonderful that my child was seen and heard and valued. On the other hand, who is this new version of my child? How, exactly, did they grow so significantly, and experience these significant moments, without me being there to see it?

And that is the essence of the experience you may have tomorrow. Feeling so proud and so happy and so excited by the growth that you see. But also feeling surprised at how much they have changed, so rapidly, and without your guidance and support. 

What else can you expect to experience as your campers return home?

• Stories: So many stories about people you don’t know and words you might not have heard before, like Milk Squad (milk and cookies at night) or Maccabiah (color war). A great way to learn more about camp is to sign on to your account and let your camper give you a tour through the photos we took all summer.
• Silence: It’s typical for kids to still be processing their own experience. We’ve attached some prompts for discussion, but they may need some time to catch up on sleep, arrange their own thoughts, and then be able to share what they experienced. 
• Coughs and sniffles: We are proud to have an amazing medical team, and though our doctors and nurses have been monitoring our children for illnesses, sometimes the combination of close living quarters, long days, and less sleep leave their immune systems a bit weaker. 
• Sand, and maybe someone else’s sock: Our campers seem to be determined to take a little bit of camp home with them! While we do our best to assist them with packing their belongings, we know that the wear and tear of a few weeks of living with others may mean items are a bit messier than you left them. We encourage you to visit the lost and found on closing day to be sure you find any items that may have wandered during the session. 
• Jewish ritual and wisdom:  Harlam is an immersive Jewish experience, where kids live jewishly 24/7. Our hope is that the lessons learned, the vocabulary, and the middot (character traits) built here are brought home and shared.  We encourage our kids to continue the camp traditions that are meaningful to them once they return home, so ask your child about the songs they sing or the blessings they may have learned. 
• Maturity and responsibility:  Your camper has spent the last 3.5 weeks learning to clean up after him/herself, eat communal meals, solve problems, and generally pitch in to get a job done. Give your child a chance to show off by stepping back a bit and letting them sort out their own laundry, help get dinner on the table, and manage conflict with their siblings. 
• New Relationships: Being a part of this immersive experience creates bonds like none other. As we like to say, Harlam is where “friends become family”. Your children will have made new friends, and also may have struggled at times to connect with others. All of these are valuable opportunities for learning, and we hope the positive relationships they created can be sustained beyond their time at camp. 

Sending your child to camp provides them with so many opportunities. While not all may have acquired a new name, we truly believe that both the incredibly joyful moments, as well as the challenges that they have experienced, have helped them to grow and develop into the best version of themselves. I look forward to seeing many of you tomorrow and watching as you reunite with your children. Thank you for sharing them with us, and for allowing us to grow with them as well. 

Safe travels and Shavuah Tov!

Lisa David is serving in her second summer as Camp Harlam’s Director after 15 years as a professional in the field of Jewish Camping. She is a former Harlam camper and staff member, and a parent of Harlam campers.