1. Adventure Treks taught me real communication. Although cell phones weren't quite as prolific as they are today, social media was on the rise, & the "cool factor" stemmed from what kind of phone you had & what song was on your MySpace profile. Not at AT. You were cool for being you, which is unfortunately quite rare these days. I just brought my personality flair & some "reaching out" techniques & I got to truly know people. Who needs to hide behind a phone anyway when you can just be you at AT? I think I just put this into perspective for you...
2. Adventure Treks taught me about community & respect. It may sound cheesy to someone who doesn't have the AT background, but community is an indescribable element of AT that forms fast and forms strong. It is almost like a large family unit & with that comes respect. Respect for your friends in the community and respect for yourself. With group gear & small living quarters, there is no room for negativity & selfishness. Some of the individuals I met in my years at AT are people I respect & venerate the most. They are real people with real perspectives.
3. Adventure Treks taught me about pure happiness & being humble. AT was the first time I truly realized how lucky I was. How many 14-year-olds get to travel for 16+ days, climb live volcanoes, glissade down snow-covered peaks in mid-summer, & white water raft without parental supervision? (That is not a rhetorical question... very few!) I was & still am a lucky kid & with that, I learned that not everyone shares these amazing opportunities & it is important to be sensitive to all sorts of diverse people around me with different perspectives on life.
Although Adventure Treks taught me way more than that in my 3 years as a student, what it did not teach me was how much background work went into making the "adventure of a lifetime." As a student you have this perspective that AT is magic. No I'm not kidding... AT just transpired into this incredible trip that took no effort to plan or organize & was just filled with amazing students from all over the world. With a wave of the wand, a flick of the wrist & an Abracadabra... boom, a mountain summit & a perfect sunrise to go with it!
But not really.
This summer I definitely experienced a new & unique perspective... I interned in the Adventure Treks office. It's funny because I remember walking into the "AT barn" on my first day of work, looking around & thinking, "what are all these people doing on computers... I mean what kind of 'work' can they actually be doing? They are all probably just on Facebook!" But they were doing work. Real work that takes the whole year to plan. Trip logistics, permits, regional director plans, travel information, waivers (all 47648653743 of them), outfitter communication, unaccompanied minor details, trip photos, welcome packets, social media strategies, t-shirts & hats, food, rental vans, health history binders, application forms, birthday cards, phone calls, pay checks, Treks Checks, graduation packets & much much more. Honestly, that's not even the half of it.
It's not like I expected to waltz into a room full of magicians, but I just never realized what really went into making an AT trip successful. Dock told me I was the first AT student to actually work in the barn, which gave me a very unique opportunity because I still understood and felt the surreality that is AT. I can explain the importance of evening meeting & still get goosebumps on my arms, I can still picture the wicked dance moves kids had when retrieving items from the "bin of doom," I can still hear Bob Bailey recite, in complete accuracy, lines from "Shrek" as the Gingerbread Man, I can still see Haley's face as she paddled our canoe backwards on the Clearwater Lake, I can still feel the tears in my eyes as I left AT for (what I thought would be) the last time in 2009, I can still tell how long a 3 minute shower really is, I can still remember laughs I had with Haley & Jenn Tanner over kidney beans, I can still smell Ramen Extreme & Oatmeal, I can still feel the "natural mattress" of sand on the Olympic Coast, I can still taste my very first AT pineapple that grew straight from the ground, I can still see smoke spewing from the crescent of Mt. St. Helens, I can still recall practicing head stands in the British Columbia with Niki Gaeta & I still CAN'T explain why I am so in love with Adventure Treks, but I am.
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I learned a lot this summer from some incredible co-workers with some varying perspectives:
Perspective 1. Emily taught me to go for it & that decisions are never easy. She taught me to be myself & she helped me act like a total goofball in my attempts to YOGA. She also accepted me as her "right hand wo-man" & taught me her ways.
Perspective 2. Joan taught me selflessness & how one person can be so loving, giving, & special. She taught me (& Emily too) how to best approach a decision & how to conquer it & also that FSU has some awesome Alumni (tell anyone & I'll deny it... just kidding) & that Talenti bars may be the death of me. (Meow)
Perspective 3. Jan taught me how to be 24 & professional & that using headphones in the office may lead to a paperclip throwing fight. But really he fed me some rad technology/systems knowledge.
Perspective 4. Holly taught me the parent perspective & how hard it is to give up your child for any period of time. I remember her telling me she missed the "pitter-patter" of her son's feet when he woke up in the morning & it hit me that I never thought my mom & dad would be "child sick" while I was away, having the time of my life, at camp.
Perspective 5: Stacey taught me that sometimes not everything works out, but that with a little self-determinism and personal strength you can do anything & be anyone.
Perspective 6. Dock taught me that working in an office can be pleasant & accepting & that no matter your age, you have a place with Adventure Treks. He also gave me a sense of importance that I am truly grateful for.
So I guess what I am trying to say is thank you for such an eye-opening summer. Thank you for letting me indulge in my summer camp obsession. & thank you for EVERYTHING!!
Adventure Treks may not be magic, but what transpires within each individual trek is truly magical & can only be understood when under its fantastic spell.
~Ciao-Ciao
