Camp Laurel

Parents often head into the New Year with renewed goals and resolutions: eat healthier, work out, read more, be on the phone less, etc. Turning over the calendar to a new year is a logical time to prioritize our lives. As a parent, it’s interesting to notice things we want for ourselves we also want for our children. Camp naturally prioritizes these things for campers. Balanced meals, constantly being active, interacting with friends and staying unplugged.

At camp, phones, tablets and the internet aren’t constantly at our fingertips. Video games are non-existent. The afterschool shuffling to and from different activities is a distant memory. By focusing on what’s important, we cut out a lot of the extraneous “noise” in our day to day. Don’t get me wrong, Camp Laurel gets LOUD. The Laurel Spirit is always alive and well, no matter what’s going on. But without constant distraction from devices, campers learn to focus on the important things in life: living in the moment, building relationships and being a good friend.

The New Year gives us a concrete reason for a fresh start. It’s also when the camp countdown begins in earnest. The days grow longer and summer inches closer. While we try to stick to our resolutions in 2019, let’s remember to be grateful for the opportunities our children have every summer at camp.