Chapter 6
Kellan
S chool ended for the summer, I haphazardly put together everything with the camp, and then went to visit my parents for a week. I came home, got a tan in my backyard while having sangria with Bree, and then I suddenly, somehow, had spent all my free time and had to scramble to make sure everything was actually ready for the camp.
I made a schedule for each day, I triple checked the kids that had registered were actually coming, I made sure we had enough interesting things to do, and that there would be enough parents to help me out. I had another teacher, Josie who taught fifth grade coming to assist me this year, too. She’d loved helping out last year and the kids enjoyed her a lot.
We’d have thirty—or thirty-one on some days with Tristan attending—kids between eight and twelve in two different groups. The kicker was that the groups weren’t as much about the kids’ age but their general demeanor and interests. I knew all of these kids at least on the surface level, and twenty-two of the thirty-one had attended last year, too.
I’d tried to divide them by age last year and that had been fine, but I felt like my current idea might be better. Josie had agreed to try it out. If it was a disaster by the second day, we’d shuffle them around a little.
I also had a couple of field trips planned, and the school would let us borrow a bus and a driver for those. The one thing that interested me the most was the guest speaker from the Akwesasne reservation. She would come talk to the kids about environmental stewardship and her culture in general.
Some of the activities would be all the children together, some of them would be in their groups. The final night would be spent at the Inn’s cabins—Nic had been the genius to suggest that and all the parents were happy with it. The kids? Ecstatic. I knew a few would likely go home for the night, but that was fine by me.
All in all, just like last year, most of the camp was about nature, our surroundings, and learning how to respect it and each other. I liked to harbor a respectful and accepting atmosphere, and the handful of kids who weren’t joining us this year were from more conservative families. I hated that they weren’t coming back, but at the same time, I’d tried my best, and if someone’s core values were different enough from mine to not let their kids attend? Yeah.
So on the last night, I obsessively made sure I had all the materials I needed packed into my car, and then woke up after two hours of sleep to go double-check. I made a mental note that next year it might be a good idea to leave it all inside until the morning.
I managed to get a few more hours of sleep, definitely not enough, but when I sipped my coffee in the kitchen, I was itching to go already.
The start time was at nine sharp. The kids had their breakfast at home—although Dana had told me that she had ways of sneaking snacks if anyone seemed hungry when they arrived— and lunch at the Inn. There was an afternoon snack, too, just in case. That was another idea by Dana, and she’d promised to sponsor it herself.
In preparation for the camp, she’d investigated things like what kids liked to eat nowadays and how school lunches were. That had led her to information on how some families didn’t have enough money to feed their kids enough these days. We didn’t know that any of the kids at the camp would have family like that, but it had upset her a lot, so I indulged her.
B y seven forty-five, I was parking my car at the Inn. The door was open into the lobby. Steve was in his spot by the door, and I knew his sister couldn’t be far.
I lugged my box of things to the door, then gave him some love. “I know the kiddos will love you and Cricket so damn much. I hope they won’t exhaust you, though.”
He just gave me a doggy smile as I went inside with my stuff.
The lobby was empty, but the dining room door was propped open, so I could go in to prep a little. Dana heard me and peered in through the kitchen door.
“Morning!” she said brightly.
“Morning. Excited?” I smiled back.
“Shouldn’t I be asking you that?” She vanished back into the kitchen, then came back with a tall travel mug of coffee. “Here.”
I blinked a couple of times, then accepted it. “Oh, thank you.” I took a sip and was pleasantly surprised. “It’s exactly how I like it.”
Dana looked a bit smug. “I know.” Then she flounced off into the kitchen.
Josie arrived a few minutes later, and we chatted about the practicalities while Dana arranged a small snack station by the kitchen door. There would always be drinks there, but there were also a few simple but filling snacks that the kids could grab. Nothing anyone would go nuts over, but stuff like fresh cut portioned veggies and pre-packaged crackers.
I soon realized I’d somehow forgotten my phone in the car and went back out to fetch it. A familiar vehicle parked nearby, and I saw Felix clock me and then heave in a breath. Shit. Somehow I’d forgotten we’d be working close to each other this week, and I hated the idea as much as I wanted to be close to him.
The dismissal when we’d last seen each other had hurt. Still did, if I was honest.
I ignored him and grabbed my phone, then locked the car and walked back inside without looking back. Maybe I should’ve told him good morning and it looked a bit rude that I hadn’t, but some part of me felt overstimulated and too complicated to interact with him immediately.
Maybe I needed therapy. Or another chat with Bree. This time I could talk about the current situation with Felix, maybe? Because I needed someone’s help to undo this mess inside my brain that clearly I was nowhere near over yet.
B y the time Josie and I went to the parking lot to start greeting the kids, Felix was in the office, sitting at the desk behind the window through to the lobby. I ignored him, as I settled into my “teacher face” as Josie called it.
Law and his kids arrived down the hill at the same time as I saw the first family SUVs turn into the parking lot.
“Hi, Mr. Kellan!” Tristan yelled and ran to hug my middle.
I chuckled and patted his shoulder. “Morning, Tristan. How about we don’t hug anyone without asking permission first, okay?”
His mouth formed a little O and he nodded quickly. “Oh, sorry!”
I greeted his dad and siblings a bit more calmly, and then it was showtime.
We had six parents, Law included, helping out with everything. They were all nice people and hadn’t just agreed out of obligation. They were all happy to be there and were with me on the goals and message of the whole experience.
Since there were only two Inn guests having their breakfast by the time everyone was gathered, I clapped my hands to get their attention.
“First things first. Welcome, everyone! Most of us know each other here, but I’m Mr. Huntley and this is Ms. Gibson.” Cheers were heard loud and clear. Smiling, I continued, “Secondly, we’re going to have a morning chat every day this week inside in the dining room of the Inn. We need to be super mindful of any potential guests of the Inn that might be having their breakfast there, okay? We start late enough that mostly there won’t be many people, but sometimes there will be others there.”
Josie nodded, smiling widely. “Let’s go see the space we’re working with. Everyone on your best behavior so we can get started!”
As soon as most of the kids were in the lobby, I lifted a hand to halt them. “We’re going to meet some staff soon, but this is Mr. Felix. He works at the front desk here, and we’re going to make sure we don’t disturb him.”
There were various greetings at Felix, who looked a bit awkward, but then greeted them back.
“Okay, in we go!” I marched them into the dining room, then got them to settle on the floor furthest away from the poor guests who had been warned, of course, but hadn’t really thought of what it would be like to have this many kids in the same room with them.
Once everyone was quiet and calm, I grabbed one of the chairs and sat on it backwards, then looked at each and every kid.
“It’s so nice to have you all joining us today. Ms. Gibson will tell you all about the rules we have, and then we will divide you into two groups after. But first, a morning chat!” I clapped my hands and rubbed them together. “Raise your hand if you have something to share about when I give you the topic. We’re gonna need short answers, and if you don’t feel like talking at all, that’s okay!
“Now, what’s the most exciting thing that happened to you yesterday?”
About fifteen hands lifted, and I had two of the kids at random chat for a moment. The next subject dealt with kindness: who were you last kind to or who was kind to you. That’s how it went for about half an hour.
Having these discussions about kindness, pride in your accomplishments, love that you felt toward others, and recognizing all of these things was an important tool each day.
Last summer, by the last couple of mornings, I’d seen several kids have sudden realizations and many of them were kinder and held their heads up high when they left at the end of the week.
Once my allotted time was done, I clapped my hands again, then gestured at Josie to take the stage.
J ust like I’d thought, dividing the kids into two groups based on personality worked much better than the age group divide. The calmer group could do their thing without the energetic ones distracting them, and the energetic kiddos didn’t need to worry about upsetting the others or being too much.
Dana had timed everything into perfection, and as long as we could hold onto her schedule when it came to lunchtime, we’d be golden. It meant that on the first morning, we had just enough time to go take a walk around the property and the cabins up the hill before Josie took her high energy group to have lunch first, while I gathered mine in the parking lot.
Law had gone with Josie’s group and would stick with hers while Tristan was attending. He’d swap with Juni’s mom, Miya, when Tristan was elsewhere for the day. Juni was Marlie’s best friend, so Miya, who also had a Duracell bunny son in the other group, didn’t mind swapping with Law.
Marlie and Harper were in my group, so I didn’t mind the two parents hopping around to be the best support for their kids where needed.
We were waiting for Nic and Oak, because I’d asked them to come greet the kids, being that they were the members of the staff they hadn’t met yet.
They appeared from around the corner with the two dogs—there had been much muffled squealing around them already, but they hadn’t been officially introduced yet either and Nic had kept them indoors while we went for a walk so we could do the introductions in the smaller groups.
I clapped my hands. “So, listen up, everyone!” Once the kids were paying attention to me, I waited for Nic and Oak and the dogs to join me. “Most of you knew there were dogs, but they didn’t join us like they most likely will during the rest of the week while we do outdoorsy things here. Can anyone tell me why they didn’t join us yet?”
To nobody’s surprise, Marlie lifted her hand confidently. At my nod, she said, “Because Cricket and Steve love kids, but it’s always better to introduce new groups in smaller batches and it’s easier to listen to the rules when there’s less people around.”
Ah, somebody had listened carefully around their adults.
“Exactly. So here’s what we’re going to do. We’re going to be calm, and we’re going to listen to what Nic has to say.”
She smiled widely. “Hi, everyone! I’m Nicole, but everyone calls me Nic. I own Black Dog Inn with my wife, Chef Dana.” She gestured to the side. “This is Oak and he cleans the rooms, Inn, and the cabins.”
“Hi, guys!” Oak said brightly, even though I could tell he was low key terrified of so many kids in one place. I wondered if he and Law were going to have more of their own, or if they were done with the three Law had brought into the relationship.
“Hi, Nic and Oak!” The group replied in a surprisingly calm manner. I was pretty damn sure that wouldn’t be the other group’s response, but at least that wasn’t my problem; it was Josie’s, and she enjoyed her group a lot. She matched their energy much better than I could, and while she, too, would be tired at the end of every day, she had a knack of dealing with the more hyper ones.
“And here are the dogs,” Nic started, then explained everything pertinent about the dogs and how their characters were, how they acted, and what the things they might do meant. She also gave everyone pointers on how to behave around the dogs.
I had made a point to include the dogs in this year’s initial information paperwork the kids had taken home for their parents, just in case someone was allergic enough not to be able to be around them at all, or there was another reason why someone might not want their kid around them.
Luckily, there hadn’t been any objections. I was set on the place, and I would’ve turned families away instead of asking Nic and Dana to keep their dogs indoors the whole time.
As if we’d actually timed our schedule, I could hear Josie’s “Who needs to use the bathroom? Do it now!” from the lobby around the time we were done with getting to know the dogs.
Both of them were in heaven, it seemed, and Oak sidled up to me and nudged me with his elbow.
“I think this is great for the kids who aren’t used to dogs,” he murmured quietly. “Look at them all.”
There were a few kids that weren’t quite as keen on getting close to the two massive animals, but none of them looked scared and they were all smiling.
“I bet the dogs will sleep well this week,” I mused out loud.
Nic heard me and laughed. “I wouldn’t bet against you on that.”
Soon, Josie’s group started to flow outside and my helpers herded mine to stand to one side.
“That’s Oak! He’s my other dad!” Tristan yelled loudly, and the expression on Law’s face behind him was hilarious.
Harper, as any long suffering big sister, facepalmed where she stood behind her sister, waiting to go inside.
“What?” Tristan asked, clearly confused. “He is!”
I patted Oak on the arm. “Good luck, buddy.”
Then I led my group inside. It was time to get some fuel into them and then get on with the rest of today’s program. And then? Then we’d do that four more times this week.