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Camp Half Blood Campers' Correspondence a Year Later-[Marianne Zekofsky to Nicholas Zekofsky]
Dear father,
I am neatly settled in again. We have quite a few new members of our cabin which somewhat disguises the number of missing members. This being my second year here, and my previous one being so utterly overwhelmed with chaos, I notice the loss much less than others.
We have begun discussing the cabin itinerary, but since our head counselor has yet to arrive and with all the sudden changes in the camp arrangement, so far the day has been filled with tours and explanations as to what is up with the camp.
They're still not willing to teach me naval instruction. I didn't press the matter last year because there was a war, and a land war at that, but it is peacetime now. I don't understand why it's so odd for a daughter of Athena to want to know about ship navigation and warfare. It was of great importance to the Greeks and to the peoples who came after them. Navigation at sea required a practiced knowledge of mathematics, knowledge of winds and tides, geography and astronomy. One must know how to read and calculate distance with rough maps and old-fashioned, yet ingenious tools. Preparing for a voyage required calculating provisions, figuring how long it would take to reach a port where more provisions could be taken in. Shot and powder had to be cared for. Figuring naval warfare is just as complicated. I don't see how this knowledge is left solely for the members of the Poseidon cabin, who don't actually require much of the instruction because they just understand the methods of the waters instinctually. As the attendance stands, there are more than twice as many members of the Athena cabin than there are the Poseidon cabin that only has four or so members. If enough of us wish to learn, I believe that the expertise of one cabin should not be denied to another.
It's not as if children of one god are solely skilled in one area. A child of Zeus can be as skilled at song as a child of Apollo. There are non-divine children who can be just as good at bullying as a child of Ares, or just as beautiful as Aphrodite's children. If anything, the skills of others demi-gods should be shared with those who wish to learn for they would be the best teachers, would they not? At times it does seem that the only inter-cabin activities we have available are fighting and eating.
Chiron has assured me that because of the influx to camp members, that there will renovations to how activities and instruction will be taking place. I am greatly looking forward to future years being as different as possible from previous years.
I shall write to you again soon, as is my privilege to do so as
Your loving daughter,
Marianne Zekofsky
Athena Cabin – Cabin 6