Dear Mom and Dad

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By Josh Anoff and Erin Ried

Dear Mom and Dad, it’s the first day of camp, and my bunk mate isn’t here yet.
Dear Mom and Dad, I haven’t even left home yet, why am I writing a letter?

Dear Mom and Dad, this place is so loud and confusing… I don’t really get what’s going on.
Dear Mom and Dad, I’m back at camp, and it’s so exciting, but I’m really nervous about meeting new people!

Dear Mom and Dad, I’m getting a hang of it now. I think I have made some friends and we seem to be doing alright.
Dear Mom and Dad, remember how I said I was nervous about meeting new people? Turns out, it wasn’t a problem!

Dear Mom and Dad, I had my first argument today because my bunk mate ate all of the peanut butter at lunch.
Dear Mom and Dad, I didn’t really like lunch all that much, so I only ate peanut butter and jelly. I think my friend is mad at me.

Dear Mom and Dad, they got rid of the peanut butter and now we have WOW butter. My bunk mate and I solved our argument… now we just eat pasta.
Dear Mom and Dad, it turns out, my friends was mad at me because I ate all of the peanut butter, but we are good now.

Dear Mom and Dad, it’s the end of Maccabiah, and I’m coming home in 3 days. I’ve had the time of my life, but I don’t know that I’m ready to come home yet. Can we have my friend over during the school year?

In camp, we face many challenges. We fight and make up, we eat too much or too little, and we struggle with finding our own way. These challenges are what make camp special. From climbing up into our beds at the end of the night to having to say goodbye to friends, challenges are part of our daily life here. But our ability to push through them, to overcome things that once seemed impossible, THAT is the magic of camp.

Josh Anoff was the Carmel Unit Head this summer. This was his 4th summer on staff at Camp Harlam. During the school year he is a high school science teacher. He also works with his local religious school as a teacher and youth group advisor! 

Erin Reed was the Carmel Assistant Unit Head this summer. She is from Edinburgh, Scotland. This was her her 3rd summer at camp.  Her favorite parts of camp are: Shabbat, stream hikes and telling everyone to stay hydrated!