They say that kids who play together, stay together. I would tend to agree with that statement. Since I was young, about eight or nine years old, I have been doing Jewish activities of various kinds.

Looking back on my experiences at Jewish summer camp, and on other programs, I must say that one thing seems to be a constant no matter what the activity was, no matter what organization was sponsoring it: that thing was hooking young Jews up with each other.

Even when I was nine years old, at my first summer camp, I can remember playing “Spin the Bottle,” and “Truth or Dare” (not to say that those games are not common ground at university parties), and the games got racier from then on.

Summer camps are quite popular in the Jewish community, and have been for quite a long time. For the most part, parents who send their kids to summer camp went to camp when they were growing up too, and know what goes on there.

And then there are the many programs that sponsor young Jews to go to Israel with a group their age. I went on one of these trips when my 16-year-old hormones were on fire; I went when my 19-year-old hormones were on fire; I even went last month, when my 23-year-old hormones were on fire. I am certainly not saying that the organizations that support these programs put a bottle of tequila and a pack of condoms in front of you-in fact it is strictly against the rules for those under the legal age in Israel to drink-but the hormonal cocktail is already pretty heady, with alcohol or without.

Somehow, in all of my experiences in these programs, no matter at what age, or what group, that damned bottle ends up in our hands, and before the night is through, our favourite camp games are being played. If smoking pot is considered a “gateway” drug, then playing summer-camp kissing games is one big-ass gate.

The point that I am trying to make is that for all of the educational goodness, and for all of the Jewish identity that I have gained throughout my youth of “doing Jewish,” it seems to me that our parents, and the organizations that provide the wonderful programming that I am writing about, have joined forces to make sure that young Jews are “hooking up.”

Their mission: Jewish grandchildren.

Search your memory, search your soul-I am willing to bet that if you grew up being involved with the same type of programs and activities in your cultural or ethnic community, you will find the same is true for you.

So thank you, mom and dad, thank you, camp counselors, thank you, Hillel and organizations like it for providing parties and conferences. Thank you for having my well-being and future parenthood in mind. Let’s all thank those who came before us who remembered that kids who play together, stay together.