Week 4 Wellspring Wisconsin (week 7, end of camp)

Last week at Wellspring Wisconsin was a bit of a whirlwind.  I positively love my job and each and everyday I am so thankful for what I am able to do there.  Working at camp was becoming pretty draining emotionally on me after learning my aunt was diagnosed with stomach cancer and I found that I did not have the emotional energy or wherewith-all to deal with what I was feeling.  I spent the week working hard on my fitness classes, spending time with my campers, and investing the time and energy into each and every camper that asked for some extra attention our last week there.  I was asked to help put together a Pilates workout dvd that would be posted on the parent blog and sent out to campers who requested it so that campers who enjoyed the class could take it home with them and workout with me whenever they wanted.  I also do a guided meditation at the end of my Pilates classes, where the campers lie on their mats and we walk through being somewhere that makes us happy, achieving whatever goal we want to achieve, and picturing a warm light moving from the toes to the head.  I try and instill during this short relaxation period, how important it is to thank our bodies for the hard work we do everyday, but also to realize that the body is just our transporter.  This may sound a big cheesy to some, but its something I truly believe.  Working at a weight loss camp it is our job to get them motivated, healthy and moving, but sometimes its also important to recognize the individual who is going through this process.  Many of the therapists at Wellspring get to know the campers more intimately than I do as a fitness counselor and general counselor, and it makes me realize how much I want to know about what they love to do outside of camp and what makes them happy.  Do they love singing? poetry? dancing? writing? Whatever it was about them that made them truly happy- whether it was working out or not.
       During this last week I actually had a group of campers and I practice yoga while sharing three things about ourselves that we love doing or that nobody else in the room knew about us.  It was fairly general and the answers varied- from driving to listening to songs before bed, to playing the violin, but I loved hearing about each of them as an individual.  I truly loved each and every one of my campers this summer, even the ones that made me nuts at times, and it helped me to realize that while this job can be challenging, there are so many parts of it that have taught me what I do want as a future career and even what I want in life.