Carmelo Bono
EDUC 4781
March 02/2022
Dr. Persard
The Broken Compass
Travelling around the world, what a fantasy it has yet become again. The 21st century saw a short window in which the world was as accessible as one's text messages, "see you son" a passenger at an airport sends to someone else on the other side of the planet. Oh what luxury, an accessible washroom, a meal, comfort (depending on which airline one travels with), but so many things that not before long, would be out of reach or infeasible.
This story involves a traveller and their equipment. Travelling without human interaction. Is it out of fear or is it just the excuse an agoraphobic introvert needed to decide that they might want to go somewhere that extends from the outside of the city's designated boundaries.
Having never really been on a hike before through British Columbia's back woods (in general), this traveller takes along their phone, a tent, their food, and some other minor objects that they figure might make for some fun souvenir pictures or create a bit of chuckle amongst interactions with various friends.
The traveller had been hiking four hours and basically following what they thought was the correct path. The summer weather was nice, the path seemed clear, and this was indeed a first experience that would be unforgettable.
The first day was mostly spent meditating and enjoying the sounds of nature. A beautiful day that ended with a pop-up chair under the stars by a solar powered lamp. Once the traveller's eyes began to shut, the traveller heads to the tent to take shelter for the night.
The night passes by silently. Morning arrives in a stir. The rustling of tall grass as though there was a gust through the clearing that the traveller had claimed for the time. The traveller was unaffected by the breeze after getting up to find a spot to urinate. All seems to being going in the right direction, when a call out from the bushes, almost a honky squeal of some sort and then the traveller had realized there is no breeze rustling through the clearing, something was stirring. As the traveller leaned in closer to a patch of tall grass, a small bear cub tumbled out landing flat on its bum glaring for a moment and then scurrying off as a larger roar bellowed out from the not too distant trees.
The traveller had literally a moment of tranquillity as the cub stared back into the eyes of the traveller. However quickly snapping to realization when hearing that not in the far distant awaits the protective mother of the cub. The cub clumsily chasing into the direction of the roar had made the traveller feel for a moment that there is a buffer of time between their departure and the arrival of mother bear.
Clumsily running goes the cub when suddenly a tumbling cub rolls out and onto the galloping cub. The traveller is in awe as the traveller is fumbling for their phone through their pack. reaching into the bag and then climbing out from the tent the horror is sheeting over the face of the traveller as they realize that the mother bear is starring exactly in their direction as the cubs wrestle between them. The traveller holds their position in hopes the bears all circle back and leave. All seems to be going well for the traveller as the cubs respond to the now incessant calling of the mother bear. The family seems to be retreating into the tress when the traveller's alarm on the wrist watch begins to sound from somewhere within the tent. A subtle chime? No, cacophonous and annoying when up close. From a distance, alarming and nosily distracting, yet can foster curiosity of even the most unfamiliar of creatures.
The traveller digs around in the tent panicking, tossing bags and blankets. The watch bounces out of some sheets. With a sigh of relief, the alarm is stopped. The traveller decides it best to get dressed before going back outside, it is getting into the morning walking/hiking time, there could very well be other travellers, and no one likes being caught with their pants down.
Getting dress, sock by sock, shirt, pants, the traveller was revelling in the amazing experiences of nature. Wondering why they are not doing this more often, and even considering doing it regularly in the future. What an experience it is to see the inner workings of nature as it takes its natural course.
Well, so they thought. Then stepping out of the tent, the traveller was nearly scared backwards into the tent when they say the three bears bounding off into the direction of the camp. The traveller grabbed the pack and took off. Not thinking or regretting anything left behind as long as the traveller still had their life. The traveller was confident that the bears would be far too interested in the now strewed biscuits and snacks that spilled out from the bag, to be bothered to chase the traveller.
In action of running and still seeing a bounding bear, the traveller sped up and continued in a direction.
It was until about five minutes and heavy panting that the traveller had stopped to realize that they did not have a map. Cellphone service was not available, at best in some places, it was "spotty" this means the traveller is now lost. Having running for as long at the speed they were, the trail back to the tent was near unrecognizable, nor will it be as simple as "back that way". In the scurry or quickness of an escape with something valuable, the feet tend to lead themselves in one direction over another quite often.
What the traveller doesn't know is that this is the least of their worries. Looking in the bag, not only did snacks fall out, but there were no blankets, chair, tent or even battery to charge the phone in case of emergencies. Indeed this is now an emergency but there is no cellular network in the area.
As the traveller becomes hungry, fear and dread begin to elapse. Old headlines of lost folk found three days later or so, are now appearing in their mind. What the universe has in store for the traveller was not originally what was planned for this little excursion by the traveller.
The night falls after a second day, the traveller has been moving slowly at a relatively timed pace, listening for landmarks, people, population, anything that would help them get home. for the traveller is feeling. The traveller finds a spruce tree to seek refuge under along with some dirt and loom mound to break whatever possible breeze, wind or critter might pass through the now den of the wayward traveller.
In the end, as the night granted little sleep to the anxiety of the traveller, they sought to rest their eyes at the very least. Thirty seconds or a minute later they opened, the traveller, frustrated leaves the nook and decides to find a place to sit and enjoy the view instead. Without the light of a fire, the traveller could still see around themselves. The moon was literally the night light that inspired noises of the night but also the sleep of this weary eye traveller. After finding a boulder to sit up, becoming more comfortable with their surroundings, the traveller stretched their legs, laid back and not before long awoke to themselves sliding off the boulder mid-stretch (as though they had forgotten where they were). Nothing looking the same as it did that evening before, the traveller felt assured that staying there was the right choice. Interestingly enough, as they had woken, their stir aroused some stowaways who seemed to have had made use of the traveller's nook. A deer not threatened by the traveller's presence rose its head and stared with its empty black eyes gauging and carefully watching ever twitch of the traveller as the traveller slowly reached for their phone. Just as the phone clicked a subtle and humble picture of nature the device vibrated. Again, it vibrates. It vibrates again, with a signal coming through the phone was blowing up with text message and email notification in rapid fire until the smile and tear of joy were halted by the unexpectedly quick screen. It was literally without warning.
An exasperated sigh startles the onlooker of the traveller, sending the deer off into the distance. the deer takes off in a direction that the traveller carefully follows with their eyes and realizes there is some sort of break in the land up ahead as the trees seem to thin out in the distance. This is highly likely to mean nothing and just be an illusion of the "enchanted forest", but that does not explain how the sound of flowing water is seemingly growing louder and more distinct with every few steps in the direction the deer was last scene heading in.
Lost, alone, tired and unprepared the traveller continue on. The stream reveals the possibility of two things. The first being a somewhat terrifying thought, bears by the river or second being a way back to someone's yard, a park, maybe even just someone's portaging route. At this point the traveller would have settled for finding an old car abandoned.
The long journey ahead takes the better part of the day until, there in the distance is a truck. What are the odds?
Response:
"Module 3 and Reflection 3
Dear Carmelo,
Your work thus far in our course has been commendable. I really hope you are keeping well and taking care of yourself. You have critically examined the readings and provided wonderful posts. You are a leader :) By further examining leadership styles and by focusing on particular leaders it will allow you to reflect on your own conceptual understanding of what effective leadership entails. As you know in order to be able to help people, it is always important to put ourselves in their position.
I can see that you have come to acknowledge that effective school leaders must promote practices that will guide and support student achievement. You are continuing your journey and have realized the tremendous role that leaders have in building relationships, fostering a positive environment and creating a joint goal for the school. While leaders are ultimately in charge of the overall management of the school, without the basic foundations of relationships and having clear, shared goals, they will not experience success. Building trust and collegiality with peers must take precedence over trying to implement change right away. You always need to start putting yourself "out there" more often and take risks with regards to looking into action research possibilities, staff PD opportunities and building your own leadership skills repertoire.
Continue to think about coaching and mentoring. Coaching and mentoring in a school setting leads to collaboration, refreshment of skills, and transmission of expertise. It does not only need to be one way, but can be reciprocal to mentor/mentee and coach/teacher. That being said, if one or both are not open to the dynamic, personalities clash, politics of education, or just plain pride stands in the way of the relationship, the effectiveness and efficiency of the exercise does not work. So, in theory (and hopefully in most cases a reality), mentoring/coaching is a wonderful thing that leads to positive results. Reality can be a different thing.
You have brought a new facet of learning to this course, which helps to strengthen your own practice.
You certainly have dug deeply into what leadership means in the education system.
Mark: A"
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