Richard Sharpe…if you have never met him, you are missing something! I first met Richard Sharpe, the British Rifleman, on the History Channel with Sean Bean playing the role of Private then Sergeant then Lieutenant then Major Sharpe. I was hooked by the humour and the drama. I started reading the series of novels by Bernard Cornwell this fall, after stumbling on the books on the shelves of the Camp Nominingue equipment room library. I have now read 18 novels, beginning with Sharpe’s Regiment and finishing with Sharpe’s Siege, with Sharpe’s Rifles, Sharpe’s Tiger, Sharpe’s Escape, among a number of other titles.

I owe my fall reading schedule to Bruce Gray, Nominingue’s middle camp director, who donated the series to the camp library. My only complaint is why there are at least two novels in the series missing! How could he leave me hanging like this…

Richard Sharpe begins his career in the army as a private, after joining up to avoid hanging for murder. Over the course of the series, Sharpe travels from India to Portugal to Spain and finally France. His service coincides with British imperialism in India and with the Napoleonic wars in Europe. His service follows the campaigns of Lord Wellington, the man who finally vanquishes Napoleon at Waterloo in 1815. Sharpe meets many scoundrels, both within the ranks of the British army and among the enemy. He proves himself in battle, time after time, and he is rewarded for his bravery as he slowly rises through the ranks, in an army in which officer commissions are typically purchased by the well-to-do and the upper classes. He meets a number of women whom he woos through his courage, his honesty and his sense of honour. He wins fortunes only to lose them, to women, to folly and to scoundrels.

What stands out in each novel are the friendships that Sharpe makes throughout the challenges he faces. There is Sergeant Harper, the Irishman who hates all the English, becomes his constant companion and best friend. Or Major Hogan, an engineer and spymaster, who values Sharpe before all others. These friendships are built out of mutual respect and trust, forged in battle and harsh trial. Richard Sharpe recognizes the importance of these friendships and values them far more than his wealth or his military duty. He is willing to give up everything and anything for his friends.

 At Camp Nominingue, the friendships that are forged on a long portage or around a campfire or sailing in a high wind or leading the Radisson brigade to victory in the Voyageur Games or by sharing a tent over a number of summers are like no other. Friendships that are made at camp are special. Frequently, these friendships last a lifetime.

Campers who return to Nominingue for a number of summers will frequently ask to share a tent with other friends from the previous summer. Campers will also request to go on a five, seven or ten day canoe trip with campers with whom they have shared a previous trip. With campers coming to Nominingue from across Canada and around the world, tent-mates and canoe tripping companions have different backgrounds and often speak a different language, but through the games, the challenges and the fun at camp, strong friendships are forged. A camp friendship is definitely one aspect that makes summer camp and Nominingue special!

Brisingr is the third novel in Christopher Paolini’s Inheritance cycle. In Brisingr, Eragon, the last free dragon rider, undertakes two voyages through Alagaesia alone without Saphira, his dragon. On one voyage, Eragon travels from Dras-Leona, after defeating the Ra’zac, back to Surda, traveling on foot through enemy territory. The second voyage takes place when Eragon along with Garshvog, a Kull, travel from Surda to the Beor Mountains, the home of the dwarves. As he travels, Eragon feels extreme loneliness, cut off from the mental and emotional link between himself and Saphira. He knows that although it is difficult for both of them to be separated from each other, that the separation will make them stronger, a necessity if they are going to be able to defeat Galbatorix and his dragon.

In a summer camp, campers live an experience away from their parents and home.  For many campers, this separation is a challenge. Studies show that most campers will miss their parents at least some of the time when they are at camp. Having worked at Camp Nominingue for more than twenty years, I know how hard this separation can be for both parents and their son. I have also seen so many boys overcome this feeling and thrive at camp. Learning to live without the comfort of home and parents is an extremely empowering experience. When a camper overcomes his homesickness and begins to participate and enjoy the opportunities offered at camp, he gains tremendous confidence in knowing that he can live and thrive independent of home and family. Like Eragon, campers learn that personal growth does take place when new challenges are met and overcome!

Eldest is the second novel in the Inheritance cycle, of which Eragon is the first, written by Christopher Paolini. In Eldest, Eragon heads off to Ellesmera, the land of the Elves where he will be tutored by Oromis, who it turns out is a dragon-rider like Eragon. The primary focus of this novel is the training of Eragon. He spends countless hours learning to open his mind to the living things around him; to practise the language of the elves, the language of magic; and to learn humility in sword fighting against elves who possess superhuman strength, speed and agility. His is a crash course in wisdom – to learn the wisdom required to face Galbatorix, the renegade dragon-rider who has made himself the king of Alagaesia. The difference is that Eragon only has weeks to prepare himself whereas Galbotorix has had more than a hundred years to acquire his power.

At Camp Nominingue, an important focus of our program is skill training. Although we do not train dragon-riders, we do provide boys with the opportunity to learn outdoor skills which they can use on canoe trips and which they will be able to use throughout their lives. Each morning, campers participate for two hours in two instructional activities, drawn from a list of twenty activities. These activities are drawn from five basic categories: canoe tripping, water skills, outdoor challenge, sports and other life skills. Campers choose two activities which they will take for six days, as they work towards developing a certain level of competence. For every instruction, there are four levels of accomplishment, so there is always a realistic goal for a camper to achieve. Campers receive a shield which records their skill accomplishments at the end of summer and they have the opportunity to continue their skill development the following summer.

CN Instructions:
Canoe tripping     Water Skills           Outdoor Challenge  Canoeing                    Swimming                   Archery   Campcraft                  Kayak                          Riflery    Orienteering              Sailing                          Climbing                  Nature studies          Windsurfing                Mountain Biking
Outdoor cooking       

Sports                       Other
Tennis                         Crafts – Woodworking
Lacrosse                     Theatre
Basketball                   Guitar
Soccer

Camp Nominingue is about fun and friendship as much as it is about skill development, but building skills is an essential part of our program. Growth in self-confidence is often the result. At Nominingue, this has always been true!

The Elegance of the Hedgehog
(from L’élégance de l’hérisson de Muriel Barbery)

The Elegance of the Hedgehog is the story of three people whose lives intertwine in an apartment building in Paris. Paloma is a twelve year old girl who plans to commit suicide before she reaches the age of thirteen. Renée is the concierge of the building. She lives two separate lives: in the life she reveals to others, she is a gruff, short-tempered concierge, with few deep thoughts, who spends her free time watching TV; in her second, hidden life, Renée is a self-taught woman of the world, whose tastes run to exotic cuisine, classical music and academic texts. The third character of note is Kakuro Oza, who moves into an apartment after the death of its previous occupant. His arrival serves as a catalyst to bring these three unhappy people together. The result is life changing!

Kakuro and Renée help Paloma realize that suicide is not the answer, that she can’t expect to be happy all the time. Paloma states: “I have finally concluded, maybe that’s what life is about: there’s lots of despair, but also the odd moment of beauty, where time is no longer the same. It’s as if those strains of music created a sort of interlude in time, something suspended, an elsewhere that had come to us, an always within a never.
Yes, that’s it an always within never.
Don’t worry Renée, I won’t commit suicide and I won’t burn a thing. Because from now on, for you, I’ll be searching for those moments of always within never.” (p.325) The conclusion of the novel is surprising and bitter-sweet, but in the end appropriate.

Every camper who arrives at Camp Nominingue is unique: each camper has his own special gifts; each has his own worries and concerns; each has his own particular problems. In many ways, every counsellor at Nominingue is like Kakuro Oza. The counsellor’s role is to reach out and find what is special in each camper, just as Kakuro does with Paloma and Renée. When this happens, as it happens many times each summer, the result truly is life changing!

I picked up Eragon at my mum’s cottage. Likely a niece or nephew had left it behind after a visit. My expectations were not extremely high. Very quickly, I was hooked. Eragon and his friends led me on a fantastic adventure into an imaginary world.

The qualities that stand out in the lead character Eragon are his resourcefulness, his willingness to take a risk and his openness to new opportunities. When he finds the egg, he understands at some level that the egg has chosen him. It becomes important for him to protect the egg against all threats. When the egg hatches and a dragon is born, Eragon provides the environment for the dragon to safely grow and flourish. Without fully knowing who Brom is, Eragon puts his trust in the man and chooses to learn from him. When Murtaugh joins his quest, Eragon recognizes his skill and loyalty, and chooses to accept his company. When it is time to accept his role as a Dragon Rider, Eragon accepts the role that fate provides. Throughout the novel, Eragon is offered new opportunities and he makes the most of them. He makes use of the wisdom of his companions whenever faced with a new situation or opportunity. He refuses to back down from the challenges that cross his path. He uses the resources at his disposal, he makes decisions and choices, he learns from his mistakes and he stays true to what he knows is right.

Camp Nominingue is a bit like Alagaesia, although there are no Urgals to attack us. Nominingue is a land of opportunity if only we are willing to take advantage of what is offered. Whether it is learning a new skill in archery or dedicating oneself to improving an inside turn in a canoe or climbing to the top of the wall using the most difficult route, new challenges are always available. Campers and staff alike can always choose to back down and take the easy route or return to the same, safe instruction where they had success the previous summer. There are many choices to make at camp and these might be some of them.

Eragon seeks advice from Brom, Murtaugh, Saphira, Orik and others. The decision, however, is always his to make. At Nominingue, there are many counsellors with wide-ranging skills and experiences, prepared to offer their support and their wisdom, but the choice often remains in the hands of the camper. This is an opportunity.

To many campers, a canoe trip into the wilderness is scary or at the least a trip into uncharted waters. Experienced campers and counsellors are always prepared to offer some advice or some opinion. Having spent twenty-six summers at Camp Nominingue and having set out on countless canoe trips, I feel that the canoe trip is an opportunity not to be missed. I feel strongly, however, that it is important that campers make this choice to sign-up individually or with a group of friends to go on a trip.

All of the opportunities that Nominingue offers to campers help to ensure that Camp Nominingue is a place where boys can grow…in confidence, in independence and in resourcefulness. This is what Nominingue is all about!