My Camp America Experience
Post-Camp Blues
I can remember the lead up to my time in America vividly. I remember meeting the representative in a Starbucks in Liverpool, going to Belfast alone in the rain to get my visa, and saying goodbye to my family in Edinburgh. The dream I had had since I was young, to work in America, was finally a reality. The flights to eventually get to Michigan were scary but exciting, and I remember the tension of this situation, the hopes and fears I had in equal measure. Obviously, these were silly looking back, but then hindsight really is your friend, isn’t it?
The time I spent in America was the best I had ever had. To go from my lowest points in my life to then some of the best times was such a joyous feeling, and the memories I made there truly will stay with me all my life. When I left America in mid October, I truly thought I was ready to return home, to my friends and family, and continue with my life after this little blissful daydream. But, over a year since the boy from Bootle began his counselling journey, the nostalgia has taken over, and life has lost its colour.
Obviously, I knew I would get this feeling, that this snapshot of life in America working a regular job would be fleeting, but it was so perfect in its simplicity. I did not have quotas to hit, I did not have targets to meet, and there were no real office politics — all there was was being a good role model and teacher to the next generation. The social aspect with the other counsellors was also a key point, living in close proximity to people who started as strangers and ended up like family is such a unique prospect. No other job off the top of my head can match this, certainly none I have worked before or after this time.
The reason this uneasy feeling has risen is due to it now being the summer, and seeing the next batch of counsellors undertake the same journey I had last summer. Seeing some of the kids who were there last year on social media, kids from a small town who had never met people from another state before, let alone another country, felt weird, like I was looking at a past life. Educating them on British customs, Liverpool-based language and the fact that English people do not in fact still travel on horseback was a joy, and if I was still in my late teens/early 20s, I would have loved to have gone back. However, as the saying goes, life must go on, and I must look to move forward with my career and grow as a person.
Still, it does not change how I feel. I would not say I am at the same lows that I experienced prior to camp, or just after I came back to the UK, but it is certainly not the best feeling. I would not say I was the ideallic counsellor, I did sometimes coast on my English accent and energetic personality to cover some flaws I had, but I still made a positive impact on the kids development, and even after camp ended, I was a hard worker and the events I worked I was also working at at least 100%.
This all probably sounds like the whining of an upper-working class caucasian male, but I do miss the feeling of doing a job which I felt like was making a positive difference in the world. It wasn’t all sunshine and rainbows, and there were moments where it did get too much for me and I sought home comforts, but if I could do it all again, I would do it in a heartbeat.
If you are thinking of doing Camp America this summer or in the future, do not let this article deter you. It will be the greatest few months you will have in your life, and the people you meet will be the best people to help you develop as an individual. The skills you learn will be transferable, and if you fall in love with somebody whilst you’re there like I did, what a story you will have to tell. Just know, eventually, you will yearn to be back.
Knowing that some of my friends are there, and reminiscing on the memories we made together, does have a bittersweet feeling. However, all I can do is focus on the sweet and not the bitter. I am sure I will see some of my fellow counsellors again, some I have already visited, and I am sure even if we do not keep in touch as much as we should, they know they have a friend and a sibling for life.
