Lunch was the quietest I had heard the boat as everybody enjoyed the simple but welcome fayre of hot soup with bread. Gluten free bread had been bought to cater for Toren’s food allergy but everybody shared it and this created a conversation about dietary requirements.
Peter put to the group my request for space for a couple of young visitors next week but then threw it me to explain who they were.
“Hamza came to us a bit back to volunteer” …. but before I could go any further there was a shriek of joy from Katrina.
“Oh they were a super group. There was four of them. They were Syrian refugees and it was heart breaking to hear of their experiences. They spoke very little English and we had to develop a system to communicate with them.”
It was four years ago but she got out her phone to show photographs of them doing a clean up on the canal for which they used our boat. Hamza was now at College but wanted to come during half term.
There was easy agreement from the group to invite the two guests next week but Peter introduced the concept of the final day and inviting a guest each to host them and demonstrate their new skills. Again this was readily accepted and they were tasked with organising the event. This entailed them thinking about the meal, the cruise, timings, pick up point, passenger numbers – checking their learning over the last 2 sessions.
All too quickly the session came to an end and we sat down for a debrief. A routine had been set and one word descriptions were given for the day.
Graham again going against the flow by using 2 words – Very enjoyable (and not as cold as last week!)
Enjoyably challenging, Re-invigorating, Incentivising, Relaxing, Chilling (from a headspace perspective), Intriguing (to learn new skills), Sharing
Other comments thrown in included:
“It has helped me blow off a lot of stress”
“It’s been an eye opener, getting to know people and finding out their creative skills and interests”
“It has brought something out of me that has been asleep for a while”
“We are all different but stil connected”
“We can all learn from each other”
“Everyone has something to offer”
We had learnt so much from and about each other – showing we were all teachers and pupils.
It was perhaps fitting that on Valentines Day we had shared a great Love – the Waterways- but had more importantly laid foundations for friendships and the firmness of a strong team to move forward.
