Secret Codes
As far as I know, my sister never went to summer camp. It amazes me to this day, that 2 girls, even though 7 years apart seem to have lived and come from two different homes! I have often described my sister and I as two only children living together. It’s true that she was out of the house when I was 11.
I have no recollection of how or why I was sent to camp. I think the excuse they used was that I had no one to play with and I’d be better off in camp. OK So what did I know? My mom packed up a trunk, and I was sent off to a place I didn’t know, without any people I knew, in a place I had never been? What could go wrong?
My camp, was in the beautiful hills of Massachusetts. It was the site of an old hotel with a lake a sprawling fields. I was too young to imagine what the hotel might have looked like in its day. I’m sure a lot of walls were broken through to create large places where groups of kids could gather and play. The dining hall was enormous. All the campers together occupied 1/4th of the area. The first day I was going, I woke up an I couldn’t move. I really could not make my legs work. I know now, that I was frightened. Literally scared stiff. My parents pushed me into the bus anyway and my summer camp adventure started. I believe I was 8 years old in a “bunk” of 10 other 8 year olds. We had two counselors and all seemed well. The only thing I hated was swim time. I have never taken a liking to swimming. Through the years I have always had a reason not to go swimming. As a result I still can’t swim, and I still don't like it! I can tolerate a pool more than a lake but swimming in the ocean is just off limits! I have never gone beyond my knees in the ocean.
I got used to camp quickly, and I liked it! There were games to play, there were crafts to make, the food was OK and the people were nice.
We had one counselor, a young man who had this fabulous machine. It was a ham radio. I always thought it was a funny name. He had this contraption set up in a little building off the big building and we would go there a couple of times a week. He explained things about the machine and he would contact people all over the world who would talk to us. I remember so well, he would hit a certain frequency and speak into the mouthpiece, CQ CQ CQ, and that was the code that people would answer if they wanted to converse. It was customary that after you spoke to someone, the two parties would exchange postcards. He had hung tons of them in that little building. Sometimes he used Morse Code. Besides the time we were supposed to be there, we had free activity a couple of times a week as well. I would always go to the Radio booth, as they called it. Within two weeks, there was a steady group that always showed up. I was the youngest, the rest ranged from 9-14.
We listened, we asked questions, and we learned. He decided, for fun to teach us Morse Code. We took to it quickly. We started to plays games with it in the dining hall. We would sent encrypted messages from table to table. Most of the other kids in my bunk liked the radio booth, but they weren’t interested in learning about it. This went on for the first 7 weeks of camp. The counselor had an idea. He had taught us enough to take the test to get our license. There was no age limitation. There was a fee. I can’t remember what it was, but it was nominal. He arranged with whatever agency handled the tests and made appointments for us to go and try. The camp director thought it was a hoot, but he had no confidence that we would be licensed.
We boarded a mini bus and were taken into the closest city for testing. Out of 12 of us that took the test, all 12 of us passed. I, believe it or not was not the youngest person to ever accomplish that. I was so revved up. The next week was the end of camp. I knew I would never be back there. I don’t know how but I knew. It was the thing I would miss most.
The bus returned to the NYC and the parents anxiously stood around waiting for us to come home.
I was so excited, I ran to my parents and presented them with my license and wanted to know if we could buy a ham radio. Sadly, it never happened. Another thing I had learned and lost. The memory though is still with me. I don’t think any kid today can compare turning on their computer or tablet and making contact with other people. There was no one trying to scam us, or extract information or money from us. It was pure enjoyment. I even remember my call letters!
