Dear Wanderer, sometimes days are lost. It appears that today is Friday. I am pretty sure it is NOT Friday, but Thursday. I got so wrapped up in the mission here that the days began to run together. That is something that does not bother me except that I forgot to write a paper and now will have to withdraw from my class because of it. It is really hard to do school and focus on a disaster relief operation. I found that out last year as I went through multiple operations attempting school and falling short of the goal. I am tired of school, and the end of the tunnel seems so far away.
Once upon a time I loved school, but now I love learning, but not the process of school. I would much prefer to focus on the mission at hand helping others, and valuing the relationships I have built. That is why I did not get the paper done by the original due date, and now it is too late to hand in.
When I was on active duty both in Iraq and Afghanistan it was so simple to focus on the mission and block the rest of the world out. My time in the field with TR is very reminiscient of this feeling. I get in there and start rocking the mission out and block out bills, responsibilities, and even plans for the future.
I hear others talk of their return home in the next few days and I know that I am staying on in Wimberley to continue the mission as we are not closing up shop quite yet. It is sad to see those I have worked with this week return home in a few days, but I am also excited because new people will be rolling in. For someone who is at the point of always wanting something new, this type of mission sure does provide that.
Every day is a new challenge and a new set of people to learn how to react to. I have always been pretty good at adapting myself to those around me, but now it has taken on a new meaning. Wanderers, when you meet new people or revisit old, take the time to focus on them, see them as an individual and value what you see. Take the time to really connect with others on a level that is deeper than what they want to show you. This does not mean pry in to their lives, but find a way to be genuinely interested and watch their reactions. So much can be learned from watching a person and seeing their reaction, sensing their emotions, and attempting to react in a way which positively influences them.
I won’t lie, it is not easy, even for someone with a high emotional IQ. It is not even I could put in to words to explain to you. Slowing down and taking the time to feel out another person and open your heart to the fact that they are different than you, well that takes patients and an interest in valuing them no matter their story. If I intend to be valued for my story, without having to share it, shouldn’t I be willing to do the same for others? Someone once told me that at the route of all things each person is the same, which in theory should make it easy to determine their motivation, the reasons they act as they do. If we are all the same when it comes down to it, then it is that our story differs, and so we must learn to react to how each person behaves differently because of their story.
I have taken many a psychology class over the years and tend to throw most of what I learned out the window in order to understand others on their terms, not on a textbook. However, I fell in love with the idea of Maslow’s Hierarchy. Maslow indicated a pyramid structure where the base level was food, shelter, and other necessities. Once a person has that they work to achieve the next level which is safety and security. The third is “belongingness”, or the social need to be loved and be part of a community. The following stage is Esteem which includes self-esteem, confidence, and respect from self and others. The pinnacle of our pyramid is Self-Actualization. This refers to the place where a person is stabilized enough by the previous things that they can focus on morality, spontaneity, creativity, and other such things.
It is not a one way street, it is a ladder which one can climb up and down as life occurs. While on operations with Team Rubicon I find that I am much better at being at the top of the pyramid. I am well provided for, safe, loved, and even moderately respected (I sure know my self-esteem and confidence levels are high). I also know that at the end of this I may or may not have a new mission to go on to, so I will be back to the basics as I do my wandering. I wonder if I will break Maslows ladder, since I have no singular home.
Oh and by the way, it is Friday still.
Signing off from Wimberley, TX.