And no math homework…

We don’t stop playing because we grow old. We grow old because we stop playing. 

~Hoagie Malloy

I hopped off the bus after an hour and a half drive. My legs were aching and my stomach was growling. I got my luggage out of the bus. My advisor, Ms.Gupta motioned me to give her my phone. I reluctantly gave it to her and I started to walk down towards the cabins. I entered my cabin and I ran to grab the corner bunk. I sat on my bed. I already knew it was going to be an awesome trip. What I didn’t know was that I was going to learn so much about myself. I didn’t know I could become the most brave, determined and excited version of myself— all in three days.

On Thursday while at Windsor Mountain, my friends and I caught a fish, with our bare hands. Granted this may sound impossible, but believe me, we did it. It was a bright sunny afternoon on the pond close to an island canoeing with my two friends, Finn and Jack. We were laughing up a storm about who knows what when, little did we know things were about to get crazy. There was something moving in the water about ten feet away from our boat. The water seemed so murky I couldn’t even see a foot beneath the canoe. As we approached this white and green thing on the surface of the water, our eyes lit up with excitement. It was a fish, a perch maybe. Its gills were pumping and fins were moving ever so slowly but it was alive. However, it was flipped onto its belly. My friends and I looked at each other with smiles on our faces because we all had the same idea. We were going to catch it with our bare hands. Jack and I began to paddle, making very little adjustments inch by inch to get Finn as close to the fish as possible. Once Finn was close enough, he stretched his arm out, but the slimy fish slipped right through his tight grasp. I called to Jack, “go backwards so we can get Finn another shot at it.” This time Finn grabbed it by the tail and scooped it up with his other hand to secure it. We cheered so loud the whole pond could hear us. All of a sudden, it smelled like Twin Seafood in West Concord. We paddled over to our counselor Ej with our prize in hand. Sadly after discussing with Ej, we had to let the fish go since it looked ill. Now looking back, I think we made a mistake. The fish was already stressed out and us catching it didn’t help. I think all three of us learned that we should think before we act. Although something is exciting at the moment, we need to pause. We need to take a second to think and think about our core values to make sure we’re doing the right thing.

I became Tarzan on Friday while at Windsor Mountain. I woke up freezing in my cabin. My hands were shaking and in one hour I was going to attempt the 20 ft rope swing. I got out of bed, put on my bathing suit and walked up to breakfast. After that, we walked down to the waterfront. I dipped my feet in the water and I felt a shock go through my spine because it felt so cold. It didn’t faze me though I was going to overcome my fear and do the rope swing with my broken toe. I ascended the tower with a sense of purpose. As I reached the top I was struck with terror. It seemed so high and so scary. However, I was not going to let that stop me. I was going to be brave. I felt the wind in my hair as Ej passed me the rope swing. I squeezed the rope like I was making lemonade. I took a few steps back and prepared for the jump. I let go and my stomach dropped to the floor. I felt on top of the world. I let go of the rope and left my fears with it. I splashed into the ice cold water and made sure my foot was alright. Once I was sure of it I swam back to the shore with a huge smile on my face. I was fearless. Looking back now, this was a good example of one of our core values: courage. I see this moment as probably the highlight of my trip. I’ll never forget that feeling and I think it opened my mind to try new things. My friends were so impressed with me and honestly I think all of us together at the waterfront brought us closer as an advisory.

It was a beautiful afternoon at Windsor Mountain. The sun was shining and the counselors had just announced a pickleball tournament that was going to take place. I went to my friend Ottie and asked him to be my partner. He agreed and we were super excited for it to start. The horn blew and we ran down towards the court to get a good racket. We lined up against Andrew and John. We were determined to win. It was my serve first. I struck the ball with my racket and it flew like a rocket across the court. John skimmed the ball with his racket but failed to hit it back to our side. I chest bumped Ottie and I could already smell victory. We went back and forth for a while scoring a few points each  so it was all tied up four to four. This time it was Ottie’s serve. He smashed the ball so hard it hit the back of the fence. “Shoot,” I called out. It was their serve now. Only three points and they would become the victors. John hit the ball to me but I returned it just too low. The crowd cheered for Andrew and John but I wasn’t going to let that get to my head. Ottie and I were relentless and weren’t going to lose. John served again this time I got it back on their side but Andrew spiked it and they got the point. 6-4 John and Andrew. This next one could be a win for them. We lined up and John struck the ball again. The ball landed just on the line on my side technically meaning they won. Nobody saw it so it was up to me to make the right call. Should I call it in or out? I was crushed. I knew I had to be honest. Sua Sponte means it’s in your hands. It was in my hands to do the right thing. I knew I had to be honest and make the right decision. If I lied I would never have been able to forgive myself and I’m happy today I made the right call. I learned that being honest is more important than winning. Although winning is way more fun. 

Nothing is better than everlasting memories. Go for it, show bravery, stay determined and never stop having fun.