Camp Namanu – Sure To Shine {Fairy Lights}

Those 70’s Girls (if you look Very closely, I am in the back row, second from the left.

Every year, I return to Camp Namanu, along the shores of the Sandy River, for the annual Alumni Reunion Weekend. Namanu is a place alive with magic, and holds so many of my own youthful memories that I cannot possibly express in a brief blog post how special this place is. And today that is not my goal, but it would be wrong to go on without noting that Namanu saved me. It was there that I first found my voice, wrote my first song (a Forest Echo in 3^rd grade when I was Sherwood Girl) and felt the strength and beauty and energy of a community truly Alive in the world.

I am just one of the thousands – hundreds of thousands – of Portland area girls (and boys… sorry, I am from an earlier time) who have spent a portion of their summer each year at Camp Namanu since it opened in 1924. The former campers and staff who return to the reunion, ages 18 to 101 (Miss Marcie, our guest of honor this year, first attended Camp Namanu in 1925, when Calvin Coolidge was president) treasure our common bond as fiercely as any family. Because we understand – in a way no one else can – how profoundly life-changing our time at Namanu was.

This year was the 90^th Anniversary of the opening of the camp, and one of my sweet Namanu sisters brought our little group a special project to celebrate. Fairy Lights.

We made our Fairy Lights together on the front porch of our cabin, and then sat around them like a magical campfire and talked into the night. It didn’t matter that it was a child’s craft, and the youngest of us was old enough to be a grandma. It was beautiful and lovely, and I am so grateful for it. Already, it is a moment I treasure.

HOW TO MAKE A FAIRY LIGHT

For each Fairy Light, you will need:

Glow sticks (Get them at the Dollar Store. We used the bracelet size)
Jar with a lid (We used Pint mason jars, but any jar will do)
White tulle (about a foot square)
Glitter (about a tablespoon)
Scissors

Cut one end off of a glow stick and shake it into the jar. The more you get onto the sides, the better. We all used two or three bracelet-sized glow sticks for ours. Choose different colors if you want.
Scrunch up the tulle and put it into the jar.
Sprinkle the glitter into the jar.
Put the lid on the jar and shake it all up.
Share a story. Sing a song. Dance a little. Enjoy.

Our Fairy Lights still shine, even in the light of day.

Fairy Lights are simple, and like many lovely things, they are fleeting. With fall coming on, and warm, dark nights upon us, it is the perfect time to share a little magic with someone – ages 1 to 101 – that you care about.

About Renée ♥

Renée is writer, music maker, artist, and storyteller. In her spare time, you can find her writing love songs about cowboys, exploring the moss-covered nooks and crannies of the Pacific Northwest, and making music with her talented singer-husband.

Comments

kelsey says
September 9 at

how beautiful are those jars! and gorgeous space
http://www.ladiesinnavy.com

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Create/Enjoy says
September 9 at

Oh wow, those are so cool!!
I think I went to Camp Namanu for Outdoor School in 6th grade. So very cool that you get to go back every year! I love my summer camp I went to for 5 summers and wish I could spend some time there as an adult, too. Summer camp really is magical!

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- Josey says
  August 25 at
  
  If you haven’t already, go to the website & consider registering for this year’s Reunion at Camp Namanu! It is Sept. 10-13 with options to come the whole time or just a day or too.
  
  Reply
  - Renée ♥ says
    August 25 at
    
    I go to the reunion every year.
    
    Reply
Bill Volckening says
September 9 at

What fun! I love a pretty little light every now and then. 🙂

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Holly Maunu says
September 9 at

This is so lovely, Renee. Thanks for sharing and I’m glad we have a connection through Namanu.

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- Renée ♥ says
  September 9 at
  
  Thanks so much, Holly. I feel the same way 🙂
  
  Reply
Jane Utzinger says
September 9 at

Namanu was my home away from home. It was and still is a very special place. I was in the row in front of you and a few to the right at the 90 year celebration. Thank you for sharing the fairy lights…I don’t recall making them way back when, but it is never too late. After all, there are “fairies in the meadow that dance upon the dew”.

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Courtney Teno says
September 9 at

Hey Renee!
Thanks for sharing. Definitely making these with my new charge. Nannying again!

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Lori Paul says
September 11 at

Wow- Wish I knew you girls were doing this last weekend. I would have crashed your moment.
But up in Backwoods we were having “Moon Cake”, brought all the way from China, and that was wonderful too.
You wrote a lovely piece about our very special place.
Thank you for it.

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Pech says
September 15 at

I never knew about fairy lights… I only went to academic summer camp because the first time I went I got sunstroke apparently my first day (I only remember playing outside and my head being very hot) so my parents never enrolled me again and now I’m a super urban girl. I remember reading books about it growing up and always being a lil jealous of the friendship, it’s good to know those are real and not just part of teen fiction novels!

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Hilary says
October 17 at

How long do they glow? I assume you can just add more when they stop glowing?

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- Renée ♥ says
  October 17 at
  
  They last at least a few hours. I’m sure you could add more if you wanted to extend them.
  
  Reply