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Who has a front row seat on your life?

Not the balcony. Not the back row. The front row.

Who sees you tired, messy, frustrated, confused. Not just polished and prepared. Who has a front row seat on more than one part of your life (work, family, etc)?

This is a question I work through with CEOs, executive teams, families, and camp kids. It lands differently depending on who you are and where you’re at in life.

But it, for sure, matters at every age.

Front Row vs. Balcony

Most people in our lives sit on the balcony.

They see the performance. The curated version. The highlights.

Front row is different.

Front row people see the full spectrum. The goofy dancing. The belly laughs. The uncontainable excitement. And also when we’re exhausted. When we’re frustrated. When we don’t have it 100% together.

They see what it takes to look like the polished version everyone else sees.

And they stick around anyway.

Balcony relationships are fine. They’re great. They’re necessary. We all have them.

But front row relationships are where it counts. Most everything else is just acquaintance stuff.

What’s even better than ONE front row seat is when someone has a front seat on your work life AND your family life or any two aspects of your life. These relationships are epic and special.

Every Kid Wants to Be Known

There’s a difference between being liked and being known.

Liked is on the surface. It’s approval, based on performance.

Known is deeper. It’s acceptance, based on the whole picture.

When people see your rough edges and still show up for you, it just lands so much differently than a 1,000 compliments on your best day (which would never happen anyway).

Everyone’s a little messy. That’s not a problem, that’s the whole point.

Kids arrive at camp wanting to be liked.

Somewhere along the way, they stop performing and start just being. That’s when the real confidence shows up. The kind that doesn’t disappear in September.

Why Camp Gets Me Fired Up

I’ve run this front row exercise with executives, families, teenagers. Everyone.

The pattern is always the same. People realize their front row is smaller than they thought. Or the people in it only see a slice.

At school, kids see each other in one setting. Classroom behavior. Lunchroom behavior. Maybe sports or clubs.

But it’s still a slice. Still curated.

Social media makes this worse. Everyone’s highlight reel, all the time.

Camp flips this completely.

You can’t fake who you are when you live together.

Your bunkmates see you first thing in the morning. They see you tired after a long day. They see you frustrated when something doesn’t go your way. They see you homesick, nervous, silly, brave.

Six weeks every summer means kids build full front rows without even trying. They see each other at every hour, in every mood, through every kind of day.

That visibility is what makes camp friendships so deep.

You’re not just liked for your best moments. You’re known for all of it and appreciated for being YOU.

And that’s where real belonging comes from.

No other place does this as naturally. That’s why I’m so excited to be here.

The Front Row Promise

At camp, your sons and daughters gets a front row seat on other people’s lives.

And she gives others a front row seat on hers.

That mutual visibility is where friendship becomes real. It’s where she learns that being known is better than being perfect.

Six weeks of living together. Hundreds of unpolished moments. Real friendships built on real knowing.

The front row isn’t always comfortable, but at camp it’s so much fun. And it’s where connection actually happens.

Camp saves seats in the front row.

Best,

Sylvia

PS - Got questions about camp? Want to talk about being in the front row? Let's chat.

​Grab a time with me here!​

Sylvia van Meerten Evergreen Director sylvia@kenwood-evergreen.com

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114 Eagle Pond Rd, Wilmot, NH 03287
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