TREK is a trek
Go, climb, come back, have fun, eat and that’s all
But can it be beyond just an adventure?
A few of us planned to go for a trek to Rayakottai fort as part of Friday special at the campus
The learning began with PLANNING – who all, mode of transport, where and how to reach? What about food? How about the duration? When to go and when to come back
And then began the PREPARATION – is it tough? Will I be able to climb? How about getting up early – will it be too much? And then began UNDERSTANDING
And then began EXPLORING self – when to give up, how much to push self, how much to support others, how to work with various degrees of skills and ages
And then some DYNAMICS – some lost their way, some were faster, some needed help, some needed someone to be with
We did not motivate anyone to climb, but everyone climbed – at their own pace, in their own time with their own strengths
The learning was intangible
The trek was tangible – we did it!
The experience was ours
The learning is ours
Chitra sharing “Amazing enlightening experience to me. I never or do not remember when I had done so much physical exercise, laughed, being alert, very much conscious, observed, explored, and slept like lizard on the rock. I felt each cell of my body vibrating and saying “Hey I am dancing and jumping in you… “. Many times I thought of quitting the trek in between but something in me and in the group reminded me to take one step by one step to keep moving. When I got lost at a point, I was a little nervous about whether I would be able to join them all by myself as my voice was not reachable to anyone. By then, when I heard those voices coming for me in few minutes I had come back on my senses. Every now and then when the team was waiting for me I had my glucose to continue further with them. Finally, when I came down I felt all of my nerves and cells thanking. It was not a very high moment for any achievement but not an easy moment to forget ever.
Tripti sharingI have been to many treks in the past. One of the biggest difference that I felt was that I was a leader to my own self, while following the group. Even when the destination was common, each one of us had our own inner journeys/ ways to complete the trek. We stretched ourselves to take risks at our own pace and felt a sense of accomplishment. We had moments of conversations and connection with self, each other and with the nature.It was indeed fabulous to see Rathnesh and Aditi encourage and take charge of people when they were almost about to give up. The children took responsibility of the roles chosen by them. The trek was completed by each one who had set out to go for this trek.YEAH, WE ALL DID IT!!