Lanalog
sPRING 2021
Dear Lanakila, Happy Spring from Lake Morey where the grass is starting to take on that summertime shade of green! I am visualizing the woodshop in full swing, with campers creating incredible projects. I can feel the energy around the intramural baseball league finals! I can hear the crackling of the fire roaring at Council Fire, our Monday evening tradition each summer. The images come fast and furious and each one makes me even more excited about what is possible this summer. And — I know this year feels different for so many reasons. Many of us have spent the year learning from home, spending time with our siblings and families. Many of us have had sports seasons cancelled, holidays put on hold. As much as I wish we all just experienced successes during the year, I choose to believe that as terrific as the good times are, it is during the challenging times that we learn the most. Camp is full of easy fun times but also has countless challenges built in. Sometimes it is easy to make that jump (say on the ropes course trapeze from 25 feet high!) and other times, we need a bit more encouragement to throw ourselves into the air. What makes Lanakila special, is the fact that you will always have a friend or counselor nearby, repeating the phrase to you, “I know this is hard — and I also know that you can do hard things!”
What a wonderful thing to realize… ”YOU CAN DO HARD THINGS.” You can face your fears, or tell the truth, or try a new activity, or go on a hiking trip, or portage a canoe, or light a rainy day fire, or sing in the show. In fact, everything at Lanakila is designed to show you that “You can do hard things.” Once we know that, we can take on challenges and difficulties that we might have backed away from earlier.
I will admit, when I took this job, nowhere in the job description did it say, “must have knowledge of how to operate camp in a pandemic.” But I’ve learned time and time again over the past 14 months, when we set our minds to it, we can do hard things! As you finish out the school year, I would love for you to really absorb this message. In fact, do me a favor. Write it down on a piece of paper and put it on your mirror, or refrigerator, or dresser, or book cover, or screen saver, or wherever. “I CAN DO HARD THINGS.” I will do the same. With the summer rapidly approaching, I find myself getting more and more excited. Each day, I am thinking about an aspect of camp 2021 and it puts a smile on my face. You will all help make this a special summer filled with laughter, joy, and friendship. Skol,
BRYAN PARTRIDGE Director of Lanakila