How Summer Camp Helped A Camper to Never Say “I Can’t”
At our multicultural summer camp near Chicago, we recognize the power of a good camp experience to transform campers’ lives, and the impact of positive psychology. A recent blog by author Blake Boles reinforces the powerful lessons he learned.
As he puts it, “Summer camp taught me that my habit of saying ‘I can’t’ was a cage, and this cage had a key called ‘I could if I.’ To escape the cage, all I had to do was pick up the key and think a little differently.”
Other positive lessons he gleaned were:
- Instead of “I can’t”, he learned “I could if I…”
- Instead of “I should”, he learned “I choose to…”
- Instead of “I don’t know”, he learned “I’ll find out…”
- Instead of “I wish”, he learned “I’ll make a plan…”
- Instead of “I hate”, he learned “I prefer…”
If you’re a former camper or camper parent, can you think of additional positive messages and lessons you learned at camp?