Learning

This morning, we were greeted with a sunlit morning after several days of drizzle and clouds. Campers loaded onto buses and departed for their third morning of mentor hikes, heading outward toward Uncles’ Falls, the Balds, the River, the Cave, and a number of other locations. On some buses, campers exuberantly sang songs, while on others, they listened to tall tales told by mentors or chattered amongst themselves.

Last night, we danced the night away during the Shindig, our camp-wide square dance. Replete with a live band, the gazebo rang out with campers and staff chanting to themselves, “One, two, three, turn, five, six, seven, eight,” as they attempted to remember the dance steps our caller, Aunt Melvina, taught.

Each day here offers endless opportunity for learning something new, whether it is an interesting ecological fact, a new dance, or a new camp song. The spectrum of learning runs wide, and campers come back to their cabins every evening having, hopefully, experienced something new, whether it is in a music activity, beneath the thunderous waters of Uncles’, or simply sitting in the cabin, learning something new from cabinmates and counselors.

GRP is an environment ripe for learning and acquiring new and diverse knowledge, and we hope each camper goes home feeling as if their horizons are broadened and their worldview is changed.

Story by Katherine Poore with Photos by Samantha J. Keebler & Brandon S. Marshall