This year saw the publication, in England, of a fascinating book about childhood – KITH, by Jay Griffiths. In this book the author asserts that children in today’s developed societies are unhappier, more anxious, more prone to suicidal thoughts and generally less emotionally healthy than their counterparts in other parts of the world and certainly than their parents were just a generation ago. Why? Because the physical and emotional landscape of childhood has shrunk to the extent that children experience containment where once they had freedom. Many young people grow up without nature, and this can often mean they lack the rich imaginative landscape and access to wild places they once had. Children need to mythologize; they need stories to expand, for them, the possibilities of what the world can be. A child needs to play. I recall my own daughter turning a tin can into a boat and using the rug as an ocean. Following a leaf-cutter ant for almost an hour along an overgrown path, to find out where he went. Turning a felled tree into a den. But these days, our kids are less likely to play in wild and imaginative ways than ever before. We don’t consider it safe to let our kids roam free the way we once did. We often consider play a waste of time – a child who spends time, instead, practising the violin or visiting a Math tutor experiences more quantifiable results. A friend of mine recently turned their family’s playroom back into a TV room, considering their child too old for play. Their daughter is only 8 years old. The landscape of childhood is shrinking, and as a result, our kids are less emotionally prepared for life, and less able to imagine the infinite possibilities of the life they can lead.
Camps can play a vital role in correcting this imbalance because we offer a child-centred landscape; a space in which the young can be young, because the world inside our gates is essentially theirs. And we offer wide open spaces. Nature. A chance to reconnect with play. Perhaps Centauri Arts Camp is even better suited to provide what Griffiths refers to as a ‘Kidulthood’ than any other camp, because the arts are what we do. Imagination, the process of creative discovery and a connection with self through stories, music, performance, art and film.
What does this mean in real terms? Imagine a group of 9 year olds sneaking through the field at dusk to catch sight of fireflies. Twelve year olds building a fort in a wild part of the woods: their counsellor tells them it will be their group’s secret den. Fifteen year olds who spin circles on the field, then collapse on their backs to laugh as the sky spins above them. Poems written by the pond where the muskrats play. Battles from Irish history re-enacted on the meadow. The squeal of one hundred children splashing in a sudden downpour. Shared songs of joy on a summer’s afternoon. Finding a baby raccoon and feeding it hourly. Dancing around the campfire, while a sunset blazes across the sky.
The examples above are not things we wish for our campers – I have seen every one of them happen at Centauri Arts Camp, many on a daily basis. Our dream is the same as the dream every parent has for their child: to provide a safe and positive environment where young people can become emotionally strong and discover more about themselves while enriching their imagination and exploring their talents.
Except at Centauri, it is not a dream.
It’s a reality.
Julie Hartley
Director
Centauri Summer Arts Camp
& Centauri Arts Academy
+1 416 766 7124