by Dilynn Wise
When school ends and summer vacation begins, I find myself needing a way to recharge, reset, and heal my heart. And ever since my parents thought it was a good idea for my brother and me to fill our summers with as many activities as possible, there has been one constant. Every year I have felt my summers were incomplete unless I spent at least one week up at Camp Mimanagish. Once I had gone to Camp, I felt like it would be okay for summer to be over. As I got older, I felt the need to be at Camp longer and longer. Luckily, I slowly found a way to increase the number of weeks I could gain up there.
It wasn't until I was in high school that I understood why I felt the need to go to Camp every year. There are so many little things that we put-up-with throughout the year. Things that we carry with us in the back of our brains we don't notice until the weight of all those little things finally tumbles down and crashes right into the middle of our life. There needs to be a way for each of us to purge all of the little things, hopefully before they all tumble down.
Mine is going up to Camp Mimanagish, a place that anchors me and helps me shed all of the weight I carry when I’m down the mountain. Each mile that I travel towards Camp, I slowly let go of all the things that really shouldn't matter or my mind keeps obsessing over. So, when I finally step out of the vehicle and take a deep breath, I can feel that breath throughout my whole self.
Camp is a place that means so much to me in so many different ways. I grew there mentally as I learned about who and what I am. What is important to me when making decisions about my life. Physically I learned to do the things that make me happy and that happiness can be felt all over. Camp is a spiritual anchor for many people who go there and that is the same for me. Who I am and what I am and where I want to go in my life were discovered and are rediscovered at Camp.
Now I have the good fortune to be up at Camp all summer, and meet everyone who comes up there. People who are at all stages in the journey of their life. And seeing them eat and enjoy the food that I make for them is a special feeling. There are connections made sitting around a table eating a meal together. Food is the fuel you need to go out and find your happiness. This is my joy to witness during the summer. There are so many moments that can take your breath away or make your heart sing. All of these things add up and heal the tiny fractures in my heart, and I begin again.