The Angry Camper

I told you yesterday my last experience of how I had been a camp counsellor one year. Do you remember that I hate camping? Good!

The next year I got a frantic phone call from Mark. It appears that two boys had been kicked out of the camp and the counsellor of the cabin, who was rather young, was not really in control of the kids. Could I help by spending another week in purgatory?

I owed Mark big time. He had taken a chance with me as a computer software trainer when I had no job. It had turned out well for both of us, but I will never forget the opportunity he gave me. I immediately said yes and braced for what I knew was going to be a difficult week.

When I arrived in the evening, all of the kids were all in my cabin. The first night was an eye-opener. I just listened, trying to size up the situation. I was right. The job for the week ahead was going to be difficult.

One of the campers, Fred (I really forget his name), in my cabin was one of the troublemakers of the previous week. His two buddies had been kicked out and he was left alone. He was not, as they say, a happy camper.

The next night we had a sing-along. This was not Fred’s idea of a great time, so he decided to take a walk in the woods, even though this was not accepted under the camp rules. I decided to follow.

We walked in silence for a few minutes, then I asked him what was wrong. He said, “Nothing.” I then asked him if he wanted me to tell him what I thought was wrong. He nodded, so I told him how he was upset because his two buddies were not there and he was going to spend a boring week in camp. He nodded again.

My conversation continued.

“You know, you have it even worse than you can imagine this week. As your camp counsellor, you have gotten a man who hates camping. As much as you might hate being here, I hate it even more. However, if you make my life more miserable by making it more difficult, then your week will be even worse. You have the choice of trying to have as much fun as you can under the circumstances or being miserable and having to deal with me all week.”

He looked at me rather strangely after I said these words. He believed them to be true. Lucky him.

I talked to the leader and found jobs for Fred to do that he would like. I wanted to include him into camp activity, not make him a social outcast.

I would love to say that by the end of the week he was the top camper. Let’s just say that he had a smile on his face more often than the beginning of the week.

He had a choice to make when I confronted him and he made the right one. My confrontation was not done with anger, but truth. He admitted the problem, rather than hiding it, and then he was presented with options. My hatred of camping made his decision easier. You do not want to go camping with me ever.

In life, we can do the same. We can make the best of a bad situation or be upset and make it worse. Sometimes this choice will not be easy. To start, we must confront the truth, and then look at the options. It may go against what we want at the time. When you look at the options presented to us and where they will lead us, our focus can shift to where we can be, not where we are now. This brings us hope. The choice is ours.