On Rosh Hashanah morning, during the priestly blessing prayer, my family has a tradition of gathering under my tallis. My 6- and 3-year-old love this moment, largely because they seem to think we’ve created a private fort, hidden from the rest of the sanctuary. Of course, what they don’t realize is that while the rest of the congregation cannot see them, everyone can hear their antics inside. It is quite the moment 🙂 But it is also a powerful reminder of how it feels to be embraced together in a space that is safe and comforting.
That sense of embrace is, without a doubt, a core ingredient that makes camp so special. Each Friday night, we actually recite the same priestly blessing, which is traditionally said over children. At camp, we expand it from parents blessing their children to an entire community blessing one another, holding everyone under a figurative communal tallis: finding joy, meaning, and connection in a sense of belonging and responsibility larger than ourselves.
Of course, we are not physically under that “camp tallis” right now. Yet one of the gifts of camp is that the connections it fosters do not end in August. We continue to feel tied together through year-round gatherings, sustaining friendships, and even moments like this newsletter, where we pause to connect as one camp family. In this way, camp teaches us that community is not bound by time or place.
This message resonates especially during the High Holy Days. Last week, Rosh Hashanah called us into celebrating new beginnings, while the upcoming day of Yom Kippur turns our attention toward reflection and renewal. By definition, these sacred days are intended to be observed in community; we sing, reflect, and support one another together. My hope is that as we carry the spirit of these days forward, we also carry the warmth and connection of camp, as if under one tallis, into the new year.
May we continue to nurture these connections throughout the year, finding joy and meaning in our shared community. Shana Tova from all of us at Capital Camps.