Summer Growth
I’m sorry, but I don’t speak Spanish.[1]
Actually, that’s not true. I speak a little Spanish. In fact, I speak more Spanish now than I did a week ago. It’s funny how that works.
Maybe I should back up.
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My present surroundings have me riding a train through Alaska, on my way from Fairbanks to Anchorage, with some stops in between. I have spent my summer(s) as a Tour Director, a fancy word used in lieu of the more common term “babysitter.” It sounds more complicated than it actually is, but essentially my primary responsibilities involve escorting groups of 40+ tourists on multi-day trips through Alaska and the Yukon. Invariably, chaos ensues.
On this trip, I have a couple from Barcelona who speak limited English. And by limited, I mean nothing outside of brand names and catchphrases, both of which are not particularly helpful in this part of the world. Navigating through all the details pertaining to a 19-day journey through the Northern wilderness is anything but simple. That why I get paid – because I get people from point A to point Z with as few problems as possible. The job already isn’t easy, and it becomes considerably more challenging when your best form of communication reassembles a hybrid of charades and sign language.
I’m in it for the money. At least, that’s what I tell myself at the end of an 80+ hours workweek that was anything but ideal. But sometimes the reward extends beyond pure monetary value.
Maybe I should back up. Further.
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When I was younger, I spent my summer vacations watching BET and playing video games. As I matured, I spent my summer breaks on the golf course or the sports field/court. Eventually, life became more demanding and I had to grow up and get a job. Grocery stores, summer camps, mowing lawns, tree planting – I’ve held a lot of summer jobs. Each has had its benefits and disadvantages, but working as a Tour Director is certainly the most demanding thus far. My current position continually presents me with all kinds of challenges and unique situations. A standard sampler platter includes, but is not limited to the following:
- Flat tires on an unpaved logging road 78 miles from the nearest anything.
- A sixty-two year-old woman falling backwards down the stairs onto a concrete slab.[2]
- A medevac off the train in a ‘town’ called Hurricane. Population 17. Doctors: 0.[3]
- A broken motor coach in the town of Chicken, Alaska. Population 12. Mechanics: 0.
- And, of course, escorting guests who don’t speak English.
Invariably, in any of the above, chaos ensues. [4]
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We have something in Alaska called permafrost. Very simply, permafrost is ground that is frozen year-round. Sometimes permafrost lies six inches beneath the surface and other times it resides much deeper. In areas of permafrost, trees struggle to gather the nutrients needed to survive because of the frozen ground. Without digging below the surface, you can quickly recognize areas of permafrost by observing nature. Areas where permafrost is prevalent are home to black spruce trees that look like they could be used for a Charlie Brown Christmas. With shrunken branches, thin trunks, and short heights, these trees often give off the appearance of being newly planted. The opposite is true – a tree that is 5 feet tall could easily be over 100 years old. But since the permafrost makes it so difficult to gather the necessary nutrients, these trees may only grow a few inches every decade.
It’s a simple fact of nature – trees need sunlight, water and nutrients to grow.
A slightly more convoluted truth pertains to our capacity for growth. What do we require in order to grow? What is needed to continue to mature and develop?
The answer: Challenge.
As permafrost demonstrates, it is possible to survive on a limited supply of water and other nutrients. Likewise, we can develop and mature without enduring hardship and difficulty. But the most rapid and most lasting growth is brought about by Challenge in our lives.
Some see Challenge as a problem. It is something to be completely avoided whenever possible. The best response is to ignore its presence and hope it goes away without ever being acknowledged. If Challenge cannot be ignored or avoided, help is sought elsewhere. At no point is Challenge dealt with directly.
Others view Challenge as an opportunity. They may not seek out Challenge, but they recognize its value. It presents them with a chance to develop new skills as they look for a solution. It gives them an occasion to gain life experience as they seek resolution. At the end of the ordeal, they emerge wiser, stronger, and better prepared to face the next Challenge.
Challenge is inevitable. Life will always present us with tough conditions, difficult scenarios, and scary decisions. There is no escaping this reality – at any given point we will end up facing some form of Challenge in our life. Some of us will endure more than others, but when it comes to Challenge we each must make the same decision.
How we handle Challenge has the potential to be life altering. The way we deal with adversity can, in many ways, be life defining. At the very least, our response to Challenge will impact the way we live our lives.
Every uncomfortable moment is simultaneously a chance to grow. It is easy to stay within the confines of our comfort zones. But true growth occurs in moments of extreme pressure and Challenge. Challenge reveals unrealized potential and unearths inner strength. It happens when we recognize our comfort box as a cage and we step outside its confines and into a broader reality. Here we push the limits of our own capability and allow our potential – as a student, as a leader, as a human being – to be stretched. When we allow ourselves to be uncomfortable in the face of Challenge, our measure of discomfort doubles as our capacity for development. As we learn to deal with Challenge, we allow ourselves to grow.
A summer in Alaska is certainly not a day at the beach.
I’m in it for the money. And maybe, just maybe, I’ll end up richer from the experience.
[1] Ron Burgundy continues to inspire me, nearly six years after his rise to prominence as a network Anchorman.
[2] She survived.
[3] I survived.
[4] For a complete and better list of chaotic stories, see Berkan, Jenna, Mitchell, Laura or Thomas, Curtis. They are better storytellers.