A Little Box of Summer Camp
Reflections on my time working at Camp Agawak in Wisconsin
Eighteen years passed,
friendships long gone.
All that remains is this box
clasped in my hands,
with tiny fragments of memory.
What once was my dream,
I made reality,
now a distant recollection.
***
Singing by the campfire,
learning to make S’mores
by its warmth.
Town runs to the laundromat,
before excursions
in the moonlight hours.
Laundry lost after one too many.
Embarrassed faces
appearing at dawn.
***
Bouncing off the blob
into the cool caress
of Blue Lake beauty.
Waking in the dark,
tears in the bunk.
Late-night walks,
guiding sleepy campers to the nurse.
***
Wandering Walmart aisles
in search of more supplies,
laughter sparkling in the fluorescence.
Blizzards at Dairy Queen,
on homesick nights.
***
Drinks at Otto’s,
dancing on tables
to the guitar’s strum.
Slowly finding my place,
finally feeling like I belong.
***
Now and again,
it feels like a dream;
these snippets gathered
keep the memories alive.
About the Creator
Sandy Gillman
I’m a mum to a toddler, just trying to get through the day. I like to write about the ups and downs of parenting. I’m not afraid to tell it like it is. I hope you’ll find something here to laugh, relate to, and maybe even learn from.
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Comments (23)
Pure nostalgia. I can hear the laughter and feel the cool lake!
Lost laundry?? Wow! You had more fun than I did at that age. 💜
I love the sense of how you (or the protagonist in the poem) put a bunch of precious photos or keepsakes that take you to different places in time. And while you have accomplished your dream, you still look back on your past with fondness
Charming. And the way that physical objects can take us back in time, really clearly evoked.
A delightful poem … I loved sharing your memories.💖
Wooohooooo congratulations on your Leaderboard placement! 🎉💖🎊🎉💖🎊
Memory boxes are a wonderful way to hold little pieces of your life, beautiful poem.
Well-wrought! Did your camp have a scary story/legend associated with it? Many do, but some don't, I suppose. And since you have so many happy memories, you obviously did not encounter such!
I had the same thought as Tim below. Such great memories.
This is so beautifully nostalgic!
Sounds like you had a lot of fun! I kinda wish I had such an experience as child, but for me this kind of summer camps are "an American" thing. Our summer camps were more communist kind, with strict teachers watching your every step (even the postcards we sent back home complaining about the food) XD
Nostalgia at its finest, Sandy. Time flies, you captured the mourning of passed time so well.
This paints a nostalgic and vivid picture. Lovely.
Sounds like you had a lot of fun. 🥰Summer Camp are certainly special.
It sounds like you have relived so many wonderful memories. I've never been to camp, but reading this makes me wish that I had.
I have been through countless camps as a teacher...and somehow, each is different and memorable in its own way. I think, like this poem says, they're little slices of life meant to teach something!
I love photos to look at of days gone by that were full of fun memories!!💖💖
Again so nostalgic sandy. Taking us back in time. amazing @Sandy Gillman
Love the image. Really feels like the past, looking at it. The colours. Muted. Fantastic cover for this poem. 🖼️✨ Learning to make s'mores. Sound like fun times for sure. - laundry lost, oh no! 🖼️✨ Embarrassing faces appearing at dawn. Love the imagery and very relatable - blue lake beauty. Love how those words sound together 👌🏾 🖼️✨ Blizzards on homesick nights. I can see how that goes together and how it would be disruptive. Love the rhythm here too. - dance on tables. This made me smile. 🖼️✨I am so glad you kept the box. Always good to return to the memories in photographs. Fantastic work as always, Sandy 🤗 ❤️ 🖤
Vivid memories like that are so palpable. Thank you for sharing ☺️
This resonated with me. I too had a similar experience brought me back to that time. Thank you for keeping my memory alive:
Great to keep the Memory alive
This was bittersweet and nostalgic. Loved it so much!