About Editors
Minseop (Korea) & Jeffrey (New York)
Hello world. We are the blog editors for Week 8 of the last week of boy’s session. I am Minseop from South Korea. I’m looking forward to share our stories of this week with you.
Hello everybody. I’m Jeffrey from Queens, NY. I hope you enjoy the blog we have created for you.
Camp Rising Sun is coming to an end.
Week 8 of Camp is here and everyone is feeling a certain way. Some are melancholy and others are excited to see their families again, to view their life back home with fresh eyes, and utilize the lessons learned and experiences back home. While the community is getting used to the routine of teamwork, instructions, and projects, the week is quickly coming to an end. This week’s blog will focus on the big things that have happened this week and the special events.
Summer Self Reflections
Camp is ending, but our journey has just begun. It is the end of the season, so we collected memories and reflections from our campers.
“This summer was really special to me. In the first week, I had some difficulties adjusting to a new place, and during the whole season, I, unfortunately, suffered from bug bites and the humid weather. But as weeks passed, things got way better, and I fully enjoyed this special summer. During the whole season, I relieved all my stress and truly enjoyed Camp. I had lots of fun this month, including all the hiking tour activities and days in Clinton. I loved having new opportunities and being challenged to try new things. I had the chance to spend a whole night in the wild on my own, I could share my knowledge and opinions with my fellow brothers from all over the world, and I could build deep relationships with them. Not only having a joyful experience, this camp taught me a lot.
The most important lesson from this camp is to be truly “myself.” I learned how to pick myself up and find my own identity. Through all the evening programs, discussions, and outdoor activities, I found my genuine self. I got rid of all the personas and masks that were hiding my true self. Thanks to this wonderful month, these precious lessons will influence my entire life. I can surely say that this summer is unforgettable. Even after I go back to my home, I’m sure that I’ll miss this camp and all my brothers.”
“As Week 8 comes to a close and Camp is ending, I’ve recognized that I kept looking back at what I have learned and experienced during my time at Camp.
During these 4 weeks, I’ve learned and relearned many things by myself and from other amazing people. For instance, I started re-learning the guitar, re-learning the drums, and even chess. The new things that I’ve learned vary from learning how to solve a Rubik’s cube to learning more about myself, what I represent, and how others perceive me as an individual.
Similarly, Camp has had an influence on the way I do things and how I execute it. Teamwork & Projects helped me mature as a responsible and constructive individual who took time to contribute to and maintain the community. Furthermore, the people around me have also influenced me in a positive way. These people made me open up in a way that helped spark conversations. Personally, I’m not that proficient at speaking to other people and starting conversations, and public speaking in general, but Camp made sure that by the end of these 4 weeks, I’d become more confident and an individual who is more open to almost about everything. Camp really touched upon everything that can be debated, discussed, and thought deeply about on many various topics which is one of the many things that I treasure about Camp.”
“When I first stepped on that bus at the Cloisters, I had expectations for what was to come. I had been told that it would be life-changing and impressive experience by other people who had done the program. However, when I got to camp, I was anxious and confused. I was expected to try and introduce myself to various international campers, and the task made me a bit nervous. It is now the end, and these strangers have become lifelong friends. All the different parts of camp, from projects, to my favorite instruction, to us just messing around, have made CRS 2018 an amazing experience. To conclude, I think that through Camp Rising Sun, I was changed for the better.”
Vigil Night
During Week 8, campers experienced their first vigil. Vigil night is a very special night for many campers. It’s a night where campers have the entire night to reflect on their time at camp and on themselves. During this long night, campers bring fire supplies to their vigil sites and have to devise and attend to their fire throughout the night. Many complications occur during vigils, but here are some perspectives of Campers about their vigil night.
“Going into vigils, I was very excited, and it lived up to my expectations. At first, I struggled to build a fire, but after about 40 minutes and a lot of patience, I had a large fire going. The patience I needed to build the fire was very similar to the patience needed during many different life experiences. I felt like the actual letter writing was an amazing experience. I have never had an opportunity to simply self-reflect without having to worry about anything else. I am very excited to receive the letter when I am 21 years old because I want to see how much of what I wrote will still have an impact on me then. It will also be interesting to see whether I have applied the lessons I learned at camp to my daily life.”
“I felt that vigils were a great experience because it was something I had never done before and it truthfully was a great time for reflection. However, I did feel it was a little long and a little over-hyped. I enjoyed the experience but I felt it didn’t really live up to what everyone explained it to be. Furthermore, I had an extremely hard time with the fire. I blew through two packs of matches and ended up needing help from a counselor which was a little embarrassing. But once I got over the difficulties it was smooth sailing and I felt really good about beating the obstacle. As for the letter, I really look forward to the letter which I would receive. It will show how much I have grown or regressed as a person and give an insight into how I felt and how I viewed the world at 16.”
“Before I came to the camp, I heard a lot about the vigil night. People near me told me that vigil night will be the best opportunity to reflect on yourself and find your own self. I had a high expectation about this special night, and I was looking forward to this night from last week. As I got my logs and other stuffs for the night, I walked alone to my spot, Ishtvar. As I arrived at my vigil spot, I started to light up the matchsticks. Since it rained a bit and the air was humid, I had difficulty starting fire. It required a great patience. I finally succeeded on crafting my fire, and I spent the whole night awake. It was a great experience to stay isolated from almost everyone and spend a night alone. I wrote a letter to myself, and I thought about my relationships, camp experience, and I eventually thought about what happiness meant. Through the overnight reflection, as others advised, I succeeded on finding my own self, and I learned how to be happy. This night will be unforgettable, since it gave great influence to me.”
“During Vigil Night, I felt very calm and collected. I sat alone with just my fire and my thoughts. My mind was racing with all sorts of ideas to include in my letter, and I spent hours upon hours writing and reflecting on my life. I tried to not read over my writing too much since I want to have forgotten what I wrote about by the time I turn 21. The night did not pose too many difficulties for me, as I got my fire going fairly quickly before it started to rain. However, I ended up writing the majority of my letter away from my fire under a nearby tree as to not get my paper soaked. It was a shame that I couldn’t get the authentic experience of writing my letter with just the light of the fire, but I still had a great time. I look forward to receiving my letter in five years, and I think it will be very insightful to remember how my mind worked at a younger age.”
Finding Our Own Identities
This week’s evening programs focused on finding our own identities. We had two nights where we had deep discussions about our ourselves. Since it is the last week of camp, our evening program focused on reflecting on our personal selves.
Our first program took place on Friday in which it was split into two parts. The first part was a small group discussion about us. We formed groups of 9 to 10 and answered questions which asked about our identities. We talked openly about our backgrounds. Everyone passionately participated in conversations and we were all open toward others’ stories. Our community members shared their deep stories and these conversations even continued on during tent talks.
The second part was led by our counselor, Olivia. Several key factors that configure someone’s identity were posted around the gym. There were spots representing identity composition, such as educational background, mental ability, race, sexual orientation, gender, and body image. When Olivia read questions about our identity, such as “Which factor of identity do you consider the most important?” or “Which part of identity seems to be the newest to you?”, campers moved to a spot that corresponds to what they deem important or whatever the question was asking. We also had 1 on 1 discussion about why we chose a certain spot. It was a time that made us think about our own selves, and it was a mind-expanding experience. Everyone participated in this evening program in a serious matter and it made them aware of who they really are.
Our second evening program took place on Monday. We were discussing and thinking about one factor of identity, gender. The activity was composed in two parts. First, we got about 10 minutes to think and write about our own definition of gender, how we perceive our own gender, and how gender difference is depicted in the media. We thought seriously about the meaning and the portraits of gender. As our Assistant Camp Director, Mads, said, “Gender is a more social and cultural term. It is defined by the individual’s choice and perception rather than biological difference.” It is this meaning of gender that I believe is the true definition of gender. The second part was comparing our answers about gender and the other questions that were answered by us, and we watched short movie clips that were deemed by our community as negative and toxic masculinity depicted throughout the scenes. We had a discussion about how certain gender roles and expectations are portrayed in characters. It was a time that allowed us to think about how toxic masculinity affects any gender.
Sport Competitions
Throughout the whole month, various sport tournaments were hosted, and the majority of campers participated in these events. Campers engaging in sports built their relationships through team games, and people learned true sportsmanship through competitions. We’ll take a brief look on what happened during this summer.
Soccer Tournament
One of the most popular tournaments throughout this summer, the soccer tournament has gathered the most participants and audiences and it was very competitive.
Soccer matches were held on certain dates in the soccer field, and great games took place. The 6 teams that participated were:
Kansla
Big Boys FC
Camp Rising Sport
Worldwide FC
B.B.B FC
Galactics FC
Basketball Tournament
The 2018 basketball tournament took place on our last rest day, August 17. Many teams participated in games, and it was a really exciting tournament.
The tournament was ran in a four team format. The teams would compete to win the CRS ‘18 championship. They would play a total of about three games depending on if they won their first two games. Each game consisted of 5 on 5; full court with a ref. Ultimately the tournament allowed for everyone to have fun and display whatever talent they had; while the tournament was cemented in friendly competition, the opportunity to play led to some exceptional performances.
Rajvir 15 points 3 assists 4 rebounds
Ophere 24 points 1 assists 13 rebounds
Ethan 23 points 3 assists 6 rebounds
Justin 12 points 1 assists 15 rebounds
Jeffrey 13 points 6 assists 5 rebounds
Ebba 25 points 4 assists 13 rebounds
Swimming contest
Our leaders of the day also held a swimming competition. Each representative from each tent swam for their tent. The winner of this contest was Justin Lee (New York).
“It felt great to represent my tent in the swimming competition. I had an amazing time competing with my friends; winning wasn’t that bad either. I’ve always enjoyed swimming, which explains why I was excited that there would be a swimming contest.”
This Week’s Instructions:
Tuesday
Intro to Lacrosse (Leo)
Intro to Action Origami (Guddu)
Understanding Comic Book Movies (Eli)
Wednesday
American Football (Justin & Marc)
Espanol Basico (Harold, Lole, Fidel, Ramiro)
The Netherlands (Sjoerd)
Hot Topic (Geno)
About Ancient History (Dimosthenis)
Acceptance as a Key for Development (David)
Camp Productions
Our amazingly talented campers created amazing artwork, music, and literatures. We’ll take a look on some of the great works done by campers and in campus this summer.
“It’s Only Everything”
Song by Zebadiah Drees (California)
It’s only Pain
It’s only Time
It’s only Everything
It’s only Life
It’s only all that's wrong
In search of a lie
My dear friend
It’s only me who’s here
beside your likeness again
So tell me everything
Oh, Tell me everything
It’s only everything
Ooooh
When it’s only us
In you I trust
Cause it’s only everything
It’s only everything.
“Spacemen”, an album by Zebediah Drees (California).
Coming out soon on Spotify and iTunes.
“Spotlight”
Poetry by David Garcia (Colombia)
I have never been in the spotlight of someone’s eyes
I have never been in the center of someone’s mind
I feel like I’m in the world’s eyes
I feel like I want to fly
Those eyes remind me of the times
where the sound of the world says goodbye
Those eyes remind me of the time when your kiss sang me goodnight
I shake, I break
everytime you turn
I fake a smile
everytime you look into my eyes
I feel like I’m breaking,
I feel like I’m gone
I feel like I don’t want to be here anymore
I feel invisible
and maybe that’s better than looking in your eyes,
knowing it won’t be better
I don’t deserve attention I don’t deserve the rush
because I don’t have the courage,
To tell you the truth.