{"id":22633,"date":"2017-01-20T04:30:38","date_gmt":"2017-01-20T12:30:38","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/?p=22633"},"modified":"2017-01-17T16:46:37","modified_gmt":"2017-01-18T00:46:37","slug":"camps-jewish-warmth","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/2017\/01\/20\/camps-jewish-warmth\/","title":{"rendered":"Camp\u2019s Jewish warmth"},"content":{"rendered":"

Climbing at Camp Kalsman. Kids will come home from camp laden with good memories. (photo from campkalsman.org<\/a>)<\/em><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

My son left for camp a few weeks ago and, try as I might, I cannot quell the heartache at his absence.<\/p>\n

At 11, he is independent and outgoing, with a gentle disposition and a winning smile. Every day, he pauses to wrap me in a long embrace, regardless of the battles we have fought over homework, \u201cscreen time\u201d in front of the computer and TV, and our ongoing feud over why he has no iPod. \u201cEveryone I know has one,\u201d he insists.<\/p>\n

He fights a good battle, my son, and I miss our exchanges \u2013 both the affectionate ones and the \u201cyou\u2019re so unfair\u201d ones \u2013 while the reins of control are in the hands of his camp counselors for 18 days.<\/p>\n

\"photo
Children on the dock at Camp Hatikvah, 1976. Though the writer\u2019s camp experience occurred on a different continent and in a different generation, Jewish overnight camp changed her life. (photo from JMABC L.09597)<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

I know his time away will be exceptional and that he will return home laden with good memories. His days and nights will be full of campfires, Jewish songs, new friends and exhilarating zip lines through the treetops. He will forget to change his underwear for far too long, spend every day in a swimsuit and leave the sunscreen untouched despite my pleas to the contrary. But, he will come home with even more confidence, buoyed by his newfound ability to stay away for longer stretches of time, surrounded by people his own age.<\/p>\n

Back home he has left a large void in the family, a space of silence that he usually fills with chatter, observations and mischief. My daughters reflect on how quiet and dull life is without their older brother, who organizes impromptu theatrical performances long after bedtime and is always game for a round of Monopoly. Sure, there\u2019s less sibling rivalry. But I\u2019d trade it in a heartbeat for his broad smile and spontaneous hugs.<\/p>\n

My own days at camp come to mind vividly, though they happened a quarter-century ago. You can\u2019t forget your camp crush, the couple that got expelled for climbing into a sleeping bag together or guard duty, when we climbed atop a water tower to \u201cprotect\u201d the other campers from imagined threats to their safety.<\/p>\n

\"photo
Shabbat eve at Camp Miriam, 1949. For generations, Jewish camp has been instilling Jewish values and a love of Judaism in campers. (photo by Sarah Ehrmann (n\u00e9e Shirley Gurevich) Habonim collection, JMABC L.24608)<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

I remember the warmth of singing songs around a long table, our bellies filled with food. My camp occurred on a different continent and in a different generation, but, like the one my son is attending, it was a Jewish overnight camp and it changed my life. It opened my eyes to different ways of being Jewish and impregnated my mind with the beauty of Shabbat.<\/p>\n

As I prepare to welcome him home in a few days, I\u2019m fervently hoping his camp will leave him with a similar feeling of Jewish warmth and nourishment. Those in the business of funding Jewish overnight campers firmly believe that the future of Judaism and its leaders lies in the bunk beds of today\u2019s Jewish camps. That\u2019s because they offer a 24\/7 Jewish environment that\u2019s engaging, supportive and fun, one that promotes religion and religious values.<\/p>\n

With two years to go until a bar mitzvah, I\u2019m counting on it. I\u2019m already fielding questions like \u201cWhy do I have to eat kosher?\u201d If I\u2019ve had to endure 18 days without my son, he\u2019d better come back with \u2013 at the very least \u2013 an answer to that question.<\/p>\n

Lauren Kramer<\/strong>, an award-winning writer and editor, lives in Richmond. To read her work online, visit laurenkramer.net<\/a>. This story was first published in 2012.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Climbing at Camp Kalsman. Kids will come home from camp laden with good memories. (photo from campkalsman.org) My son left for camp a few weeks ago and, try as I might, I cannot quell the heartache at his absence. At 11, he is independent and outgoing, with a gentle disposition and a winning smile. Every […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":22598,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[15],"tags":[1573,3705,218],"class_list":["post-22633","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-life","tag-camp","tag-jewish-values","tag-judaism"],"blocksy_meta":{"styles_descriptor":{"styles":{"desktop":"","tablet":"","mobile":""},"google_fonts":[],"version":8}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22633","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=22633"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22633\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/22598"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=22633"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=22633"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=22633"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}