2024 Travers Winner!

~Finn Gerighty Class of 2024 

A trip for many friendships 

It is more fun to talk with someone who doesn’t use long, difficult words but rather short, easy ones like, What about lunch? 

A. A. Milne, Winnie-the-Pooh

My upper lip stung as I ripped off the duct tape stuck to it. I rushed to the bathroom in the middle of nowhere to assess what had happened and what I was going to do next. Everything was good, so I ran back to the meeting hall to show off the mustache I had just made. In three short days at camp, I learned I could be a great friend. I learned how to have fun with some new people. And I learned how to make the most of the three short days and have a great time. 

After the campfire, Fitz started to lead us down to the waterfront through a narrow trail. All I could see were the stars in the sky and the reflection from them on the shiny lake. We finally got to the lake, only to see millions of stars piled on top of each other everywhere in the sky. On the way back, it was mayhem; everyone was running, trying not to get lost while going up the trail back to camp. My hands were grasped onto somebody’s hood from their sweatshirt. The polyester acts as a glove for my cold grip.

 I smelled the pine trees while we were down by the water. “Is that you?” Someone said it through the cluttered voices. “Where’s Fitz?” said another, drowning in all the voices. The moist sand crunched and squished under my feet as we walked around by the waterfront, gazing up at millions of stars in the sky. The meaning of this was that walking down to the waterfront made me think, “What is really up there in the sky at night?. What is past is what we can see with our telescopes?. What goes on out there in space? Why can’t we go there, and what makes it such a border? 

We played in our cabin until around 10 o’clock before going to bed. Ben, Miles, Owen, and I were playing a game with a balloon, trying to hit it up and get the balloon to hit the floor before someone hit it up again. We were playing in our cabin around 10 o’clock before going to bed. We were all getting to know each other more and having a bunch of fun.The woody smell of the new cabin wafted into my nostrils, giving me a nostalgic feeling. Ben got out and immediately shouted, “Redo!” “No, Ben, this is your third redo; you’re out!” We all said to push him out of the circle. I dove around a corner to hit up the balloon. “I got it,” I said, so the next player knew I wasn’t out. The dirty, sandy floor made me cringe when I slid around to hit the balloon. This made me think about how the rest of the year would go. Making friends easily and having a bunch of fun with them. How would it be at this new school with new people and new everything? If it would go great or take a wrong turn down a steep hill,. 

It was James, Elija, Joe, and me, all competing in the task: make a mustache in the meeting hall to win a special prize at the end. We all rushed out of the meeting to find our mustache. I chose cardboard and tape and went into the bathroom to make it look good while looking in the mirror.I ran quickly to get my shoes on so I could get to the dining hall without wasting time. I smelled the rain pouring down on me as I passed through the gap to get to the dining hall. I was awoken by another smell—the smell of the woody dining hall—as soon as I entered. I swiftly got to the cardboard and tape and went into the bathroom. I once again smelled the smell of duct tape on my nose and a little bit of hot chocolate from the machine that everyone had earlier. Once my mustache was ready, I went back and got up on stage. “Jame is definitely going to win,” Elija said, motioning me over to his mustache. 

This makes me wonder how I won. I definitely shouldn’t have won, but it did win. Why did I win? Is it because there was a bias? Is it because of something else? Why did I win? Because I know it definitely wasn’t because I had the best mustache. 

Don’t go for the win; go for the experience.