Throughout all my years being a camper, what I really couldn’t wait for was my chance to be a counselor. Having grown up admiring and looking up to all my counselors, I wished one day, I too would be as cool as they were. Counselors always seemed to be the heroes of camp.

What I loved most about being a counselor was that I finally had the opportunity to be the hero. Guiding a group of campers was just as character-building for me as it was for them. I learned about responsibility, organization and a whole lot about myself from a fresh perspective. I saw myself in them, and therefore understood more about my own childhood.

Of course, there’s always something fun and empowering about calling the shots. If something came up that was unexpected, I had to think on the fly. It was exciting for me to know that my campers were looking up to me.

All in all, hanging out with my fellow counselors, being looked up to, and taking on new responsibilities were the greatest things about being a counselor for me. Having parents entrust their children to me was a great position to be in, because it called on me to become my best and strongest self, for the sake of the campers.