Dear Mom and Dad,

It’s been a fantastic day! We’ve done so much. It seems so long ago that we were at church. I was so excited about camp that I didn’t really listen to what Rev. Walton said. OH, wait …  I remember that she said the memories you make and the experiences you have at scout camp are ones you cannot get anywhere else. If today is anything to go by, she is dead right.

Imagine you work at a popular burger restaurant. Imagine it is a quiet, Sunday morning when – bam! – out of nowhere, 60 or more scouts rush in and start ordering burgers, chicken, and all sorts of milkshakes. Chaos! Well, that is what happened when we (and Troop 2) stopped at Rush’s. But fair play to them, they fed us ALL in 30 minutes flat. And it was delicious. I even ate the lettuce on my burger, which I know I don’t do at home, but I figured, “Hey, it’s scout camp, I should try new things!”

Right before we got to camp, we stopped at a gas station. Some older boys bought huge bags of candy and massive trays of drinks. I didn’t think that was a good idea, but I later heard from another older boy that they do this so they can sell them to scouts later! There is a swift trade in drinks and candy at camp, especially towards the end of the week. I wonder if I will be a customer! I have already eaten and drank lots of the treats you packed for me!

When we finally got to camp, we had a tour. We are right by the water, and it is very pretty.  I listened to all the rules at check-in and think I am going to do just fine with them. It was very hot, and we all got so sweaty moving our trunks and sweeping out our Adirondack shelters. SOOO sweaty. Thankfully, the very next thing we did was a swim test. The water was cool and refreshing and, of course, I passed and can now do all the aquatic activities and also swim during free time. We have made our Adirondack cozy. There are five of us in there – well, five boys; I think maybe some creepy crawlies will be sharing with us! But that is ok. We have to keep it spotless so we can pass inspection every day.  Mr. Gage said something about earning a trophy paddle for that, but I’m not quite sure what he meant. I will just do my part and keep things tidy – just like I do at home, right?!

It was kind of gross to put our Class A’s back on for the flag ceremony that was right before dinner, and some of the other boys complained about that. But when we got to the ceremony I could see why Mr. Satterfield and Mr. Gage made us wear them – Troop 1 was by FAR the best dressed troop. We stand out because we do things properly! Dinner was fried chicken, green beans and potatoes. Pretty tasty, though not quite as good as Grandma’s. I was a waiter, which meant I had to get the food and clean up after dinner. That was not all that fun, but everyone takes a turn and I am pleased I did it the first night and so it’s out the way.  Now, just so we are clear, clean up after dinner at Ho Non Wah in NO WAY means I will be any good at cleaning up after dinner at home. So please don’t get any ideas..

After dinner, we ran around a lot. There was a cool, big campfire and we played some frisbee and even collected some crabs. I was a little nervous and just a touch homesick when the sun went down, but being surrounded by my new scouting buddies meant that didn’t last long. We have so much fun! We played manhunt and cards. And, you know what, I haven’t even missed my computer… so far, at least!

After such a long day I am heavy-eyed but I am so excited for tomorrow – my first full day at Camp Ho Non Wah. It’s going to be amazing.

Thank you for sending me to such a great place with such an awesome group.  I do miss y’all, I will admit, but I’ll be sure to write you again this week.  Please give Wolfie a scratch on the ears for me and let him know I’ll be home before long! And please throw the ball for him. He likes that.

Love,

Your almost Eagle Son

PS. If you want to send me a note here, you can email it to [email protected] – I would love to hear from you!  I also here our leaders are posting pictures of our week on our smug mug site at https://troop1.smugmug.com/2024/Camp-Ho-Non-Wah-2024  Mom and Dad – I bet you will find my smiling face in those photos!