On May 7, the time had come: the long-awaited Randolph Fellowship camp started again. When I met the cheerful faces of the students of the Montessori Lyceum Oostpoort on the camp site in Vierhouten that Monday morning, I immediately felt that this would be a few days full of fun and adventure. The energy was infectious and the good atmosphere between the children and us, the supervisors, set the tone for the rest of the week.
As a student and supervisor, I really enjoyed the dynamics within the group. It was special to see how the children, from all corners of the world, taught us about their diverse backgrounds and cultures.
We kicked off the week with an Olympic day, where the teams competed with each other not only in sports, but also in creativity. Each team designed their own flag and came up with a team name that reflected their identity. The self-invented yells were the starting signal for healthy competition in the coming days.
The evenings were filled with lots of chatting, pleasant dinners and swinging discos, where we let go of all the brakes. It was fantastic to see everyone enjoying and participating so much. And yes, new friendships blossomed and provided even more fun.
It was sometimes quite difficult to involve all the children in everything, but luckily at the end of the day we only saw smiling faces.
I met one of the children months later in Amsterdam. He saw me and immediately rushed over to tell me that he and his classmates had enjoyed the camp in Vierhouten so much. That was of course very nice to hear. I enjoyed it immensely.
Love, Douwe Groen
