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The Parents Guide to Camp
Preparing for A Quiet Home
By: Cara Natterson, Fernwood Cove Parent
Two summers ago, I stood at the airport in Los Angeles watching through the plate glass window as my daughter’s flight taxied slowly backwards. As Talia had boarded the plane, there were tears rolling down her cheeks. And then – as if they had known each other forever – another girl wearing a Fernwood Cove sweatshirt put her arm around Talia’s shoulder and started chatting her up. I have no idea what she said, but I could have sworn I heard a laugh before they disappeared from my sight. That first night at home wasn’t so strange because it felt like it feels when your kid is out at a sleepover: strangely quiet but enjoyably peaceful. It was the second night when the reality set in. I was reading with Talia’s younger brother Ry and he stopped me mid sentence. “It’s really weird not having Talia here, Mom. I miss her soooooo much.†“Me too.â€
After we let the feeling sink in, it was done. Like a cloud passing overhead. We all knew that she was going to have experiences at camp that we couldn’t possibly replicate at home – physical activities like lacrosse and archery and ropes course, and more importantly emotional ones like sharing a bunk and making new best friends. We knew, but we still held our breath a little bit. It was only when we got the second letter (the first one was a classic poison pen letter that I think actually read “Come take me home!†precisely as Jim and Beigette had warned might come), that we could exhale. She loved camp. LOVED. And her happiness filled the house, making the quiet enjoyable and the one-on-one time with Ry less surreal.
This summer, I will say goodbye to both of my kids, since Ry will be going to camp as well. I have braced myself for what that new kind of silence will feel like – cavernous, I am sure. But I have plans. I am going to read novels, organize closets, and go on dates with my husband. The guilt I felt over sending Talia away that first summer has been completely replaced by a firm knowledge of the growth for all of us. Years ago I was a camper too, traveling from LA all the way to Maine, and I never thought about how my own mom felt when I left. Now I know. She missed me deeply but a much bigger feeling soon took over: the indescribable happiness that comes when you know your child is having an experience of a lifetime.
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