Happy Fourth of July! A Lesson in Emet

The CLC Blog

Home » Happy Fourth of July! A Lesson in Emet

Each week, we highlight a different Jewish value through activities at camp. This week, the value is Emet, truth and honesty.

By Cantor Chanin Rosen, Faculty

SONY DSCToday, as we celebrate the 4th of July, we celebrate freedom.  We mark this day with festivities and fireworks, donning our red, white and blue with pride for all to see. Today our campers will celebrate with a carnival, no doubt enjoying the mix of games, dunk tanks, bouncy castles and red, white and blue snow cones that take the edge off a hot summer day.

Festivities aside, the Fourth of July is also a day to remember that our ancestors fought to acquire their independence from a society they felt was oppressive. As they forged a new nation, they had an opportunity to redefine their values in a place where they were free to make choices and be who they wanted to be. Over centuries, America has cherished this value of freedom and has served as a refuge for those who could not be themselves in other lands for all kinds of reasons.

DSC07100Camp offers our children an extra measure of independence and freedom. Guided by incredible counselors and staff, our campers are free to think about trying new activities, developing new attitudes, taking on new responsibilities and building new friendships. Each week they are asked to focus on a different Jewish value with the hope that it will serve as a backdrop for how they think about the choices they make.  This week we have asked them to focus on Emet, truth, being honest and truthful in all that they do.  Of course, honesty is paramount here. We know that it leads to building strong relationships amongst our campers and between the campers and their counselors. Honesty is the foundation of any community where every person feels safe and can trust each other.

But as I spend more time at Crane Lake Camp I see another kind of emet unfold as well. Because they enjoy a bit more freedom, our campers have the opportunity to find their truest selves. They can ask themselves honest questions about their passions and strengths, their likes and dislikes. Freed from their usual routine and responsibilities, our campers can take the time to explore SONY DSCwhat is important to them, to see how they react to new situations, different faces and challenges that they might not experience during the rest of the year. Moreover, they can see how their truth impacts others. Spending so many hours together over the course of the summer, they quickly learn about the power of their words, how what they say affects others and what that means for their relationships. They learn to distinguish between situations where the truth is absolutely necessary and encounters where they may need to temper what they say so they will not cause harm to another individual.

It strikes me that it takes a kind of freedom from the usual routine, freedom from what is familiar or habitual to find this truth. This is the beauty of being at camp! Crane Lake is a place for all of us to discover our truths, to get a clearer sense of who we want to be because we are free from certain other demands that are placed on us every other day of the year.

Happy Fourth of July!

Cantor Chanin Becker has served as the cantor of Scarsdale Synagogue since 2005. She is delighted to be serving on the faculty of CLC for her third summer. She lives in Tarrytown, NY with her husband and 2 sons, Aaron and Jordan.