Hanging on to that last little bit of summer

While folks in the rest of the country are probably thanking their lucky stars that the sweltering, miserably hot summer of 2011 is at a close, folks in Seattle are wishing summer would last much longer.  Many of us are in denial about the obvious nip in the air and the increasingly frequent morning clouds. The summer sun and warmth didn't show up out here until about August, and it seems cruel that it would be ending already.

But there is hope for hanging on to that last bit of summer in a little book called P.S. I Hate it Here! Kids' Letters from Camp by Diane Falanga.

The premise behind the book is simple.  Falanga, inspired by her own daughter's hilarious letters from camp, collected over 150 camp letters from families around the country.  Here they are in all their misspelled, heartfelt, innocent, and sometimes desperate glory.  The tales and travails of summer camp through the eyes of kids out in the world for the first time.

P.S. I Hate it Here is one of those books that you can see on two levels. There's the obvious one: it is a fun, laugh-out-loud reading experience for parents who won't be able to help seeing themselves as they once were.  It is also a non-threatening introduction to the possibilities of camp for both kids and parents.  (My daughter loved it so much I had to give the book a time out so I could take a break from reading it multiple times a day.)

But there's a second level here, too.  These letters offer us the opportunity for an unexpected reality check. We live in such a weird time: politicians perpetually snarling at each other, forecasts of doom everywhere we turn in the news media, an odd obsession in the entertainment industry with dysfunction and the apocalypse. Books like P.S. I Hate it Here remind us that all that is going on "out there" doesn't negate what is happening in the "right here" of our daily lives.

 Falanga's collection of letters remind us that the world of childhood is still one of adventure, hope, excitement, innocence, and love. Kids are still going to summer camp. Parents are still sending them off with mixed feelings of relief and worry. Children still love candy, are fascinated by their own injuries and ailments, work hard at guilting parents into giving them what they want, view the world from a lens of wonder.  Families are still havens of safety for children and are still thriving.

Dear Mom,
Why haven't you sent me a letter? Everyone else has gotten at least one but I haven't. I am really worried who died? What happen? is anything wrong?  WRITE BACK!!


Dear Family,
...my finger got smashed under a canoe, swelled extra huge, then turned green. Zack the health guy put acid on it. I exploded with puss. he lifted up my skin and I could see my muscle in my finger. Now it's fine. Also we canoed down the river.


Dear Mom and Dad,
...One kid is playing other kids for $50 in poker 1 kid lost $10. But don't worry I didn't play. If I did I would play the house.
P.S. Dad that poker set could have been useful after all.


I think I might need to go ride my bike now.  Or maybe dabble with some arts and crafts. Archery?