WWW.QNS.COM RIDGEWOOD TIMES JULY 27, 2017 39
A Weekend of Joy and Tears
vschneps@gmail.com
With three grandchildren
in Tyler Hill
Sleep Away Camp
in Pennsylvania, visiting day
arrived and with tears and joy I
hugged them tightly.
With my 10-year-old Blake
and 8-year-olds Jonah and
Morgan away for seven weeks,
I was looking forward to seeing
and hugging them in real
life. Th e remarkable camp sends
photos to their parents every day
and so I’ve “seen” them smiling,
laughing and singing (from videos
sent), but there’s nothing
compared to big hugs in person.
I know they are happy, but
with my two kids being “rookies,”
I wanted to see for myself
that they were okay.
I had a few minutes alone
with Jonah’s group leader and
he shared with me that Jonah
and his bunkmates had resisted
being neat with their things
and his bed-making skills were
lacking. When he told Jonah “we
need your help,” Jonah became
the leader and led his bunkmates
in keeping the bunk neat. It was
the same thing with going to
activities. He had resisted. His
counselor shared with me, “I
told him we needed him to win!”
Sure enough, he was off and led
his group. Leadership is in his
DNA .
Th en I visited Blake’s
bunk and met his
“Friendship Coach” (counselor).
It’s a brilliant designation
of what was an
assistant group leader.
When I asked Blake what
a Friendship Coach was, he
simply said, “Oh. He helped
me have the courage to enter
and perform in the talent show.”
I said, “I see you are water skiing
this summer. Did he help you
get over your fright?” “He sure
did, Grandma!” he replied with
a big smile!
I was so impressed. With life
being complicated, and many
kids with divorced or dead parents,
there is this person who
is part of the group that off ers
counseling seamlessly in a totally
non-threatening way, and so
sensitively. It wowed me!
As a grandparent, I had to
arrive an hour aft er my daughters
and then leave an hour
before them. So, when I texted
my daughters to ask, “How were
your goodbyes?” I felt my heart
soar when Elizabeth reported,
“Jonah said, ‘Mom, isn’t it time
to go?’”’ No tears were shed
by him or his cousins. I felt
tears well up in my eyes as I saw
how relaxed and joyous the kids
were. It was hard for me to leave.
A successful summer is in the
making!
VICTORIA’S
SECRETS
Victoria
SCHNEPSYUNIS
tweet me @vschneps
Nothing better than cuddling in
your mom’s arms.
Hugging time with Jonah, Mom and sister Addy.
Blake, Morgan and
Jonah at camp.
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