10/11/14

An ECOEE Fairytale

by Jillian Ross

Once upon a time, there was a merry band of adventurers. They loved the outdoors and desired to see the world. They yearned to travel to distant lands to see fantastic sights and to become more than merely adventurers. More than anything, they desired to be true Expeditioners, leaders in their own right. One day, this merry band heard of a wise, old man, who had done it all and knew the secret to becoming a true Expeditioner, for he himself was one of the few.

            “We must go!” the merry band exclaimed, “This may be our best chance to become true Expeditioners.”

            So the adventurers came to the wise, old man and they asked him, “How do we become true Expeditioners? Please, tell us what to do.”

            The wise, old man replied, “What do you think?”

            The merry band stood confused, dumbfounded, for this was not at all the response they were expecting. If they knew how to become true Expeditioners, they wouldn’t have sought the advice of this man.

            “Just tell us what to do,” the merry band insisted.

            The old man shook his head, but eventually said, “Come with me.”

            And so, the merry band began their travels with the old man. They traveled far and saw many fantastic sights. For many days, they canoed through the Canadian wilderness, facing cold, rain and snow, charging rapids and walking long portages with heavy gear.

            “Surely now, we must be true Expeditioners,” they exclaimed. Yet, the old man just replied, “What do you think?”

            They explored those beautiful places, lands that had been set aside to be protected, unimpaired, for all generations henceforth. And they insisted, “Surely we are true Expeditioners.” But the man just shook his head and said, “What do you think?”

            The band of adventurers repelled into the canyon of the Narrows in the land of Zion, scrambling over rocks and swimming through muddy pools. Venturing out from the towering red walls of the canyon, they cried, “We certainly must be true Expeditioners after all this! What more can we possibly do?”

            When the wise, old man turned and said, “What do you think?” the merry band of adventurers realized that perhaps becoming a true Expeditioner, a true leader, was not a task to be completed, but a process of growth and development that would extend far beyond their travels. And when the man said, “Come with me,” the adventurers did not hesitate, but followed with the new knowledge that they were already Expeditioners and, yet, there was so much left to learn.