Tuesday, June 26, 2012

June 22- Finding camaraderie


By Terri

Staring at a blank page with the hope of writing something “brilliant” or perhaps “memorable” or a least minimally embarrassing is daunting. The problem is not about content but rather about quantity… so much has happened since our arrival, and it is only Day 2.
Should I start with Joe’s calmness when realizing the ignition to the van wouldn’t turn while still in the Great Fall’s airport? Or should I report on how delicious Candy’s lasagna was for our first dinner? How about our first encounter with flexibility when Guide Joe was still agreeable to showing us the Reservation even though there was a miscommunication due to a wrong telephone number?
No. I’ve decided to start with the end. After a full day of touring parts of the Reservation and into Glacier National Park, (breathtaking in both grandeur and the devastating effects of avalanches, floods and fire) a healthy and tasty meal of chicken and vegetables, and a visit with Bob Tailfeathers who briefed us on what to expect at tomorrow’s meeting and shared his artwork, we had a team meeting to share individual goals for our experience this week, which formed our team goals, which helped drive our joint description of the characteristics of an effective team. During this exercise, we began to interact with each other more and found that teasing and laughter began too. Whether we learn slash experience the culture or learn and experience it, I am certain that camaraderie will be cultivated and flourish among us easily. Andy, Brian, Marisa, and Danny are exactly the type of “can do” people I would love to be on a team with, and patient, calm, Type B Joe is just the right type of leader for our journey, and indispensible and cheerful Kelsey is an intern extraordinaire. So… apologies if a recount of the day’s events or scenic views were expected. But… upon reflection, what jumped out for me most was that diverse strangers from Maine to California could come together in a state none of us had visited before and form the beginnings of a strong and effective team full of camaraderie. I look forward with eager anticipation to the rest of the journey and the experiences yet to come.

Message of the day: Finding Camaraderie.

No comments:

Post a Comment