since 2019 I have run a game in the Wednesday rotations at camp. Where all the campers are split into teams of various ages and go from station to station, counselor to counselor, competing in 10 to 15 minute games. But today, after talking a lot of smack, I was placed on a team and allowed to compete instead.
I won. And not because I was older than everyone else. But because I knew how to get the most out of my team. And taught them how to fight for every point and push for every advantage.
But actually it was very fun. I did really win though.
There's something quasi-spiritual almost going on. If you really stretch it. But there's this thing that happens where the oldest campers don't want to participate in the games anymore because they feel like it's not fun and they want to do what the counselors are doing and run the games. They think that's the fun thing to do. Or that's like the next step or whatever. So then today I swapped places with them and they ran the games and I participated. But it's like, the reason I have fun running a game is the same reason I had fun playing the games. And the reason they don't enjoy being on a team is the same reason they didn't like running the game. You think you've gone somewhere different and you're doing a new thing but really you're doing the same thing as before.
Or it's like how interesting people are people who are interested in others and the world. The game is 'be engaged and engage with others.' But what a lot of people think the game is is 'have authority and use authority.' That game is trash. It's not even a game.
I'm aware that it's ridiculous to be saying all this about games played in a field with children but I do think on an abstract level it matters if you're ever part of anyone sort of team or existing in a group.
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