Leadership Semester Update
by Ashley Bowker and other Fall 2009 Leadership Students

Reflection #1, by Ashley Bowker:

All 14 of us have become closer than we ever imagined.  We all dove into activities with the same fears and anxieties, making each challenge even more rewarding when completed.  We've traveled 50 plus miles by foot, with more weight on our backs than you can imagine.  Some have gotten sick, but more importantly we've gotten through it all together.  We are all leaders, which for myself has been the biggest challenge.

Some of us feel like we are on an interview for an internship, so stepping up to be "the" leader has sometimes meant biting your tongue and listening.  Overall, we have come to a fine balance of leadership skills.  It just works.

We met some of the finest individuals in the world.  As I write this, you, the reader, can see that this trip's main focus has been working as a team.  When the group was first asked to describe what it is to be a leader in one word, a common denominator with all of us was teamwork.

Prior to arriving at Costa Rica Outward Bound, I anticipated participating in fun, challenging, adventurous activities.  I didn't envision all the teamwork involved.  Now, 30 days later, I know all the adventures I've experienced would have been the same for all the others...

I know we are all excited for what's to come, and we all look forward to keeping in touch and seeing where the year takes us.

Reflection #2

I have cleaned my gators 4 times now. By cleaned I mean soaked, scrubbed, power washed, hand scraped, and soaped them up with suds until my arms got sore. I forget what color they were. When I was on the fourth cycle, I finally realized that cleanliness is subjective. Mud tromping for 12 days not only gave my gators character, it stuck to me as well. Who knew hiking to the beach from the mountains would mean going up ridiculously steep hills. What goes up must come down...

At first it was a challenge to keep trucking with 50 lbs. on my back, but the weight of emotions soon made it near impossible. The group was stressed when tired, hungry, and most of all when trying to put up a tarp in the rain. Amazingly, when the sun came out in the AM, so did the smiles.

Taking four hours to hike 3 miles gave us a lot of time to think, and a lot of Costa Rican scenery, but at the end of the day we made it. Mud = earth, learn to love it, because it's part of who we are.

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