The Friendship Fire
Tonight marked our first Friday Night Service, our 80th Friendship Fire. The Friendship Fire is a celebration of all of the friendships that form at camp between people from all over the globe. One of the annual traditions that separates the Friendship Fire from other Friday Night Services is forgoing our normal keylog ceremony and instead having a camper or staff representative of all the many different cities that make up North Star throw a keylog into the fire to represent the bonds of friendship between their hometown and North Star. This summer we have campers and staff from 29 states and 16 countries, and we had keylogs spanning everywhere from Edinburgh, Scotland to Cape Town, South Africa to Deerfield, Illinois.
Following our musical selection of “If Not For You,” by Bob Dylan, a staff chorus of “You’ve Got a Friend,” by Carole King, and a camper-counselor chorus of “You’ve Got a Friend in Me,” by Randy Newman. Charmingly enough, both the Dylan and Carole King tunes were inspired by and written for their musician friends to cover, the former for George Harrison and the latter for James Taylor, a perfect representation of the beautiful bonds of friendship that can be shared over music that we love to see at every music performance on Friday nights. There’s few greater ways to witness and celebrate the friendships we have and continue to make here at camp than when we gather at the council ring: campers and counselors, some of whom have known each other for years, while others may have just met, with their arms over each other’s shoulders, and their shoulders under each other’s arms, swaying together in unified song. [andy: insert a note about that study you were talking about which linked friendship and music together] Throughout the service, we also had pairs of staff friendships that have been made over the years recite readings and excerpts for the whole camp on the value of friendship. It served as a wonderful example of the kinds of great bonds that can be formed at camp and the value they represent.
Afterwards, we had campers from each village share what values and traits they believe good friendship consists of. It’s a perfect way to set the tone for the rest of the summer, with our campers going back to their cabins reflecting on how they can be the best possible friend to each other. We talked about kindness, loyalty, honesty, uplifting one another, and mutual respect, among other qualities, and how at North Star, everybody is a friend. Yes, some will be closer than others, but everyone at camp is expected to treat and hold in regard one another as they would a friend. Whether it’s something as simple as a friendly wave or smile in passing, or just checking in with your fellow North Star brother when they look like they might need it, the kind of community we’re trying to build around here relies first and foremost on the friendship we all share. To paraphrase Ralph Waldo Emerson: in order to have friends, you must first be one yourself.
Finally, at the end of every Friday Night Service, we have a staff member give a sermonette of their own pertaining to the theme of each service. Tonight, first year counselor from Liverpool, Michael Gould, recited a touching and insightful story on friendship based on his own experiences abroad in South Korea and the bonds he’s already created at North Star in just the few short weeks he’s been here.
