Hi everyone. It’s November 19th, the anniversary of Grandpa D’s birth in 1915(?). He passed away last year in April at age 90-ish and on many days I think of him and(and Grandma) and on days like today I miss him. I’m not sure if he would have approved of my traveling and not being so close to family, but travel is an example he and Grandma D. set for me. All the stories I heard from them were of travel to places around the U.S. and (maybe) abroad. The overseas part might be a constructive memory, though.
We’re sailing on the Pacific Ocean now, on the MV explorer, and I’m talking with a student about paying off loans, career choices between teaching and economics, micro finance and non-profit work internationally or domestically. It’s these type of students, who ask tough questions of themselves aloud, that make working here a pleasure. Even if I’m just a sounding board, a place to reflect the questions for students, it seems to be a useful role. I consider this work to be rewarding both personally and professionally. I also struggle with wanting to continue to do this direct work, advising and training students, and wanting to take a leadership role in a university setting, and separating from the direct work with students. I realize through the context of my family and from being apart from them, that my values around the education, in a university setting, of students is a uniquely held one and that same set of values would inform my work as an administrator in any university setting. I guess the question then becomes: Which supervisor wants my leadership values?
This thought comes to me often on this voyage as I consider the leadership demonstrated by my family, my grandfather and parents, my siblings, aunts and uncles and then consider the leadership of the countries and governments that I visited. My perspective feels like a jumble now. I think that’s the point of this voyage. Opening ones eyes to the world in a direct, hands on way really has made me think hard about my leadership and what it means to lead.
The ship moves forward every day, this morning followed by a single albatross. This particular huge bird was very efficient in its use of wave draft and subsequent lift. Did you know that albatross sleep while flying? The part of their brain that makes them fly stays awake (like the part that makes our heart beat when we sleep). This animal seems to have evolved away from land, probably because every time it stopped, someone tried to beat it over the head and eat it. I’d evolve too if that was the case. Students seemed to have gotten the routine of ‘getting on the ship on time’ down by Japan. I’m so glad they can learn, even it took a while. Most of the students are buckling down on papers and reports from their ‘field trips’ in the countries. Some of the students, we’ve learned have hugely outstanding debts from this trip and will likely have their accounts turned over to collection agencies. This seems harsh, but it’s the end of the line for many of these students. Financial aid has been exhausted and they’ve been less-than-responsible for their costs. This includes items like ‘trips to the Taj Mahal.’
Students are getting the point of these travels, for the most part. I’m impressed. Over and over, students get to a place where the relationships they build here matter and the lessons of viewing difference really sink in. The natural comparing and contrasting of cultures, lifestyles, cleanliness, sharing, costs, collective psyche’s, propaganda posters and behaviors is truly an enriching experience. The tension created for some students by all this new information and stimulation comes out in some predictable and some really creative ways, both on the ship and off. The least fun and most predictable is the over use of alcohol as escape/coping/self medication for the stress. More than a few of the students arrive to the ship intoxicated for those and other reasons. But this isn’t the first time we’ve worked with drunk students, so the outcomes are fairly predictable too.
Between the ports, so many very fun things happen on the ship, not the least of are highly competitive circuit of scrabble games, all varieties of strategy games like ‘Risk’ ‘Risk-Star Wars Edition’ ‘Risk-2010’ (which looks way more futuristic than what I’m anticipating for 2010), ‘Stratego’ and various fantasy games. There are monopoly, ping-pong, basketball, volleyball and mini-soccer tournaments. There are study groups and work groups and paper writing support groups and diversity discussion groups and knitting and reading and movie-watching and kids groups. I have great conversations about really esoteric topics with students when they come out of classes. I laugh with and at the stuff people do at talent shows and sing a few songs myself. But I really admire the many students who want to learn and grow and gain important experiences from this voyage. This is a first rate voyage in so many ways.
Japan was a really nice break, being a first rate, first world country, as it is. It’s clean and no one hassles you to ‘buy now’ or ‘how much?’ The transportation is efficient and well loved by the locals, and us, for that matter. My red-ish beard and Heather’s blonde hair caught a few stares on the subways, but mostly from curious 4-6 year old kiddies…the littler ones didn’t know what to do with us. Little kids would stare in awe, as only little children can do: mouth dropped open, eyes wide, ice cream cone forgotten and dripping onto the floor. The only permanent object right then was a large, hairy and odd looking thing (man?). Some were moved to tears and nestled into their caregiver, others responded better when I made silly faces or played peek-a-boo. At times, in certain moments, I would get lost in a book at some little café or stare out at the changing maples and ginko trees, ablaze in yellow, red, orange; leaves swirling in the wind. In these times, I’d look up and literally have to ask myself aloud where I was. “What country are we in?”
Heather answered, “Japan”
“Interesting.”
“Really?”
“Well, not this second, but it seems better than saying ‘terrifying.’”
Back in my book, a turn-for-the worse novel about Tokyo’s organized crime, I find myself longing for the small town congestion of an underdeveloped infrastructure in Santa Cruz and the bustling holiday cheer I get to approach with family in Illinois.
I suppose more good news is on the horizon and I’m looking forward to celebrating Thanskgiving with my sister, Elyse, in Oahu and then Costa Rica for a few days before packing up, squeezing through the Panama Canal and a warm jaunt to Miami. Just 20 more days at sea
Peace!
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