Creating a space of Belonging

My daughter and I just returned from an amazing week at the Reconstructionist summer camp in the Poconos, called Camp Havaya. At Camp Havaya each week has a theme. Last week’s theme was “Kehila,” which means “community” and so we were focusing on “belonging,” one of the camp’s core values. 

In my learning sessions with the campers, I asked them to share about times when they have felt like they belong and times when they don’t belong. A theme emerged very quickly. The kids felt they belong at Camp Havaya and they don’t belong at school. When I asked them to dig deeper and think about what was different about these two places they realized that at school they are asked to conform, whereas at Camp Havaya, they are invited to be their true selves. 

Their experiences were in line with Brene Brown’s research on belonging. She writes, “true belonging doesn’t require you to change who you are; it requires you to be who you are.” Whereas when we are asked to fit in, whether explicitly or implicitly, we will never truly be able to feel we belong. 

It’s not an accident that campers feel they belong at Camp Havaya. The camp has been very intentional about creating a space where kids can feel safe being vulnerable so that they can fully be themselves. In fact, the camp motto is “Be bold, be you.” 

One of my greatest hopes for Karov is that it is a space where people feel they belong. As we move toward the High Holidays (spoiler alert- Rosh HaShanah begins September 11), I’m going to be thinking more about how we can create a culture at Karov where everyone feels they can show up as their full selves. If you have ideas, I would love to hear them!