Fridays with Franky: Live the Camp Values at School
Happy Friday everyone! It’s Franky the camp dog here with another installment of Fridays with Franky. I’ve been thinking a lot about our camp values this week. At WeHaKee, we talk about our values every day. We even wear them on our nametags after the council fire!
It’s really great to be a part of a group of people who have decided upon shared values to uphold. The camp values of community, compassion, justice, peace, and truth are there to guide us in everything we do. And as our campers know, Bob talks about bringing the things we learn at camp out into the world… so how do we do that?
School is a big part of our lives, whether you learn in a big school, small school, or at home. No matter what your school looks like, it is a group of people you are around a lot! It can be a fun opportunity to see and meet friends, but it can also get hectic. So lean on the WeHaKee values to help you through… here are some little tips!
Community- Take some time to reflect on the people at your school and what makes them special as a group. Maybe your school takes pride in certain extracurriculars, or comes together to cheer for teams. Maybe there’s an event that is unique to your school. Does your school have a mission statement or it’s own set of values?
Once you take the time to reflect, consider how you might bolster these community-building activities at school. Maybe there’s a project you could do to make your school’s values more prominent, or help to write a mission statement for your school. This would especially be a great project for home-schoolers!
Compassion- Because schoolwork makes us so busy, it’s understandable that we sometimes turn inward with our worries. It’s so easy to think about all that we have to do or get done. Bringing compassion to school can be simple! Try asking one person a day about how their week has been… and see where the scope of your world goes from there!
Justice- This is one of WeHaKee’s hardest values to explain, but at school it can come in handy! You are charged with recognizing the uniqueness and dignity of everyone around you… think you can do that at school? Are there groups of people who deserve recognition that aren’t getting it? It might seem like a big task, but it could be as simple as telling someone that you see the good things they are doing!
Truth- “Be true to yourself and help others seek the truth too.” That’s what Thatch says at the council fire… but that can be hard at school where you might be worried about what other people think! Here’s your chance for some self-reflection; while you seek to be the truest version of yourself, make sure you aren’t accidentally judging someone else for their truth. Do your best to change your first thought about someone.
Peace- Bring peace to yourself and others with little things throughout the day. Maybe this means taking a second to take a deep breath, or make a ritual of walking to class with someone who makes you happy. Peace is something you cultivate, so take some time to think about what you need to be peaceful.
Comment below with ideas you have on how to live your WeHaKee values at school! Maybe you can partner with a school club or teacher to do a project in school about values.
See you at camp!
