Arriving at camp was always a moment absolutely filled with
excitement, hope, and happiness. The long bus ride to Camp St. George in Eagle River , Wisconsin ,
was truly thrilling and energized me to a point that I thought about it every
waking moment until it finally arrived. We
would arrive at the camp, after an eight hour drive around dinner time. Upon our arrival we would grab our belongings
and jump off the bus. If it was sunny
out that was great, but if it was raining that was fine, as nothing was going
dampen or interfere with my feelings of inner peace and happiness. My life at
that time was so constantly laden with fear sadness and desperation, that the
excited, carefree feeling that washed over me upon arrival affected me all that
much more. It was wonderful to feel
happy, content and just plain normal.
Before going to dinner, all of us from Isabelle Hall would
be assigned a cabin. The cabin was long
and narrow. There were windows on both
sides and there were wooden floors which creaked every time we took a step. Along
this narrow corridor were eighteen bunk beds and very little walking room
between them. There was also a small
walled area where a high school girl would stay and, in theory, supervise
us. There was also one small bathroom with
a sink and a toilet, no shower or tub. All of us would run into the cabin and
pick a bed, the older kids got what they wanted, the top bunks and the little
kids were stuck with the bottom bunks. We would deposit our belongings at the
bottom of our beds and head out for dinner.
All meals were served in a large hall close to our cabin.
The food hall had very large windows which allowed the sun to shine in. There were long wooden tables and chairs and the
hall just looked and smelled fabulous. The food was cooked by a German woman
who was blessed with real culinary talent.
She was assisted by high school girls but the food creations were hers
and every meal was tasty and satisfying. As an added bonus to the situation, we didn’t
even have to do the dishes. Those were
done by the high school girls; it was simply wonderful.
After dinner I would begin to, once again, familiarize
myself with the camp. I walked down by
the lake, strolled along the long pier and got to know my surroundings. The lake was always so peaceful and
inviting. I’d listen to the birds and
watch the fish jump and I would tip my foot in the water to gauge the
temperature. I would then kick my feet in the sand and wonder what sand castles
we were going to build. After visiting the lake I would walk up the
hill and see the screened-in cabin. I
would peak in and see the ping pong table and think about the ping pong contest
that was to be held during my week at camp. I so looked forward to playing ping
pong.
I would then venture further up the hill and walk down by
the outhouses, checking to see if anything had changed. The outhouses were nestled in the woods and
were filled with flies and smells.
During the day we were not allowed to use the bathroom in our cabin, we
had to use the outhouses and so it was important I checked these out. I am sorry to say they never changed; they
were always the same… terrible.
After I finished familiarizing myself with the important
camp sites, I noticed it was getting dark, the sun had gone down and it was
probably time to go back to my cabin get ready for bed and see the end of my
first day at camp. As I was falling to sleep that first night, I thought about
my day’s adventures and I could not think how it could have been any more
special and pleasurable. This was just
my first day and there was so much more to come.