Month: November 2021

Luck or Fate?

When I was a student at pre-med school, my biology teacher (Dr. Solomon) and I discovered our shared love for classical music. This brought us together as listeners, and we often discussed Beethoven, Toscanini, and Beethoven’s 9th symphony. It was hot stuff at the time because Toscanini conducted an orchestra created by NBC just for him. On this extraordinary evening, the NBC orchestra played the 9th sympathy with full choir. As luck would have it, we both listened while at our homes to this remarkable rendition of Beethoven’s symphony. I even remember crying at its conclusion — and as I discovered, so did the professor. It is a grand memory I will never forget to this day.

During this period, my sister moved to LA, and I decided to go where she was. Not only to help her with her family, but I intended to enroll at UCLA. Interestingly, my friend and professor also thought this was an excellent idea and that I study psychology instead of medicine. He constantly commented on my ability to be with and communicate with others. He thought this very special, and I thought of him as very special, so with his prodding, I thought, why not? As it happened, this brought Lennette and me together at UCLA. Perhaps you know that story? If not, Let me tell you.

Lenette had a job at the Santa Monica YMCA teaching swimming but accidentally stopped by my table where I was interviewing for summer work at our day camp. She so loved the philosophy I talked about that she decided on the spot to work for me at the day camp. Incidentally, I had the thought that “I just met the girl I’m going to marry.” Amazingly, Lenette had a similar experience. Shortly after our interview, she ran into some friends who also had summer jobs, told them about our discussion, and mentioned: “this is the guy I’m going to marry.”


Life is full of strange twists, and we have our share of them. Some work out — like moving in with my sister to help her, enrolling at UCLA, finding the estate in Malibu to rent and turn into a day camp, and meeting and marrying Lenette.

Then, of course, the strange story of finding the 80 acres we purchased and turned into the miracle of Camp Shasta was even more serendipitous!


Life is so strange———-We think it just plays itself out———Not true, it plays us.

Sy

How It All Began

I’ve been asked to share my story of how I got into working with children. It is a story about my journey of discovery. Although it began with me thinking I was in charge, events themselves took control and went the way circumstances often dictate. Yes, I was the driver behind the wheel, so we might conclude it was my choice. Maybe yes and maybe no? I’ll let my story answer that question.

After returning from the service, I used the G.I. Bill to enroll in a local pre-medical school. At this time, pre-med was something like a three-year college which led to more advanced medical studies. At the time, I also needed some pocket money. And since I preferred being my own boss, I came up with the idea of running my own day camp. I bought a three-seat station wagon and put the word out that I would be taking care of children during the workweek. I soon had fifteen boys and girls to take care of.


By listening and watching, it soon became apparent that the kids had their own ideas about what they wanted to do and how to spend their day together. I quickly established that it was my job to meet their desires, not mine, and I did my best to do so. Giving kids their own voice was one fundamental approach to how I worked with them. In other words, instead of me constructing activities for the day, I opened our morning gathering first by asking each what they wanted to do. I made it my responsibility to fulfill their suggestions. The more I did this, the more they expressed themselves. Little did I know that their words were training me, and little did they realize the power of their words.


Those actions, I came to understand, is a philosophy of leadership. Getting followers to express themselves and getting the leader to fulfill what they express (if safe) is good for both the individuals and the group. This philosophy evolved into a significant educational process.


A few years later, while a student at UCLA, the need to make a few dollars made itself known once again. Since I am not a compliant employee, it was easy for me to come up with my answer to that. As good fortune would have it, my brother in-aw found a perfect place to rent out in the Malibu Canyon, and in little time we had a day camp called Purple Sage. The philosophy of listening to children and small groups proved to be a remarkable success.

Sy