Carpe diem. Hope everyone had a sweet Memorial Day Weekend. Lauren and I are settled in at camp with Eli now. As we have navigated the journey up to camp, I have tried to “step up to the balcony” and remind myself of the bigger picture. My mind has taken me back more often than not to the nitty gritty details of what to pack, how to organize the car with all of Eli’s toys (and some clothes), and then where to fit all of our stuff in our summer log cabin. Once in a while I am able to stay present and realize that all of this movement is naturally part of transition.

Our small family’s transition flows together with the larger transition from off-season to summer camp. Being part of this “pre-camp” process is exhilarating, eye-opening, and sometimes a little daunting. Every day there are so many moving parts, all working harmoniously as part of the greater whole (even if it doesn’t always sound like a symphony). For example, our long-time caretakers—Uzi & Wayne—assemble as many summer staff as they can to transform this spot into the beautiful camp we all know it as. At the same time, we are hosting and running various staff training programs.

Not only do we have all of our outdoor adventure and waterfront activity specialists go through the most rigorous courses in their fields, but we also host our very own Blue Star Training Institute where we host staff members from other camps who want to take the classes. More broadly, we are laying the foundation for the safest, most fun, and greatest skill developing summer.

Lauren and I can never say too much how much we deeply appreciate all of the work and thoughtfulness that all of our team pour into pre-camp. It is amazing to be part of the transition. For sure, it’s beginning to look a lot like Camp…

Carpe diem.  Hope you had a meaningful Passover. Lauren and I thought we would seize the day by updating our blog in anticipation of this summer 2013. We will frame these spring entries as a “Directors’ Blog” where we share ideas we are thinking about that relate to camp in some way. Of course, we might sprinkle them with some behind-the-scenes insider info to let you in on some of what’s going on to get ready for our 66th summer of Blue Star magic.

One read that caught my attention recently was actually an article my dad emailed to me in what has become a Herschthal family ritual of weekly shared e-readings. It is an article about the importance of a family story, or narrative, that connects its members and gets passed down from generation to generation. On multiple levels it really is hitting home for me. Of course, it reminds me of the unifying story we tell each spring during Passover. Also I see connections to the generational transition at Blue Star in which I am grateful to be playing a small part. Continuing to tell Blue Star’s unique story and beginning to add new chapters is exactly what we are venturing to do. Further, the article has me thinking of the stories and rituals Lauren and I will create with Eli as we honor one of our core values of family time.

On a different note…all of our Camp Leaders and our Program/Special Events Directors were in town last month for our annual visioning and planning retreat. Lots of giant post-its were strewn across the walls with tons of cool ideas for things like Color War theme (that’s all you’re getting out of us here!), new In-House Options, and a brand new camp-wide “Weekly Show.” Everyone was fired up all weekend and brought a lot of positive energy. We are excited that we now have sprung forward (though we wish we could get that hour of sleep back) because the next season looks like summer…