Photo courtesy of T Bar M

While the digital age has allowed us to connect online, there’s a lingering desire for deeper friendships in person. Being with our friends is a need we’re acutely aware of these days due to the pandemic. In fact, these days might seem especially lonely. You’re likely wishing you could hang out with your friends, go to the movies together or meet up at a park.

And, if you’re like many students this summer, you’re missing your camp friends. In so many ways, camp combats loneliness and makes us realize the value of being together.

From the first day of camp, it’s clear to see you’re in an environment teeming with people. Counselors and campers dot the campground, bringing people from different backgrounds together and encouraging a variety of friendships.

Days are spent being with our friends—sharing canoes, gathering around wooden dining hall tables, loading onto a bus for a day trip, sitting next to friends on a bench around the campfire. We miss all of these. We miss being face-to-face.

We miss the days when phones weren’t automatically in our hands because we were more interested in what’s happening right in front of us real time. We wouldn’t be scanning the highlights of social media to feel connected. We’d swap our feeds for live talent shows and skits at camp, creating shared experiences we would grow to treasure.

It’s OK to miss camp. It’s OK to be bummed that this summer didn’t happen the way we expected. One thing we can plan on is not taking camp—or the friends we make while we’re there—for granted.