Pittsburgh MCG - Kristen - Day 2

This morning I had to setup breakfast with Claire (another girl on the trip and one of my roommates). We had Cereal, yogurt, hardboiled eggs and fruit. After breakfast we finished getting ready to go and left for Yellowstone. On the way we stopped at the Roosevelt Arch. The top of the arch said “For the benefit and enjoyment of the people.” We then drove through the arch towards Yellowstone. On the way to Old Faithful we saw a Bison. We stopped and took pictures. It was a lone male. Our next stop before Old Faithful was, Roaring Mountain, a fumarole (the hottest type of thermal features).  When we got to Old Faithful’s parking lot the geyser went off. We went inside and started our civic engagement project. I had to talk to this lady named Ellen (Michele made me because we all were not doing anything). She was from New Jersey, and it was her 2^nd time there. After I finished the project I ate lunch. After everyone was done we went and waited for the geyser to go off. It wasn’t what I expected to be. I might have been due to the wind blowing the steam towards us. After that we went on a hike to get a better view of Grand Prismatic. The steep hill up was worth it and we ended up seeing a ground squirrel which we thought was a chipmunk. After that we headed back to the cabin. On the way back the traffic was slowish. It turned out there were two long horned sheep. Then we came back to the cabin and had Pasta for dinner. Now we are resting before out “team building” exercise 8 (10pm in PA).

Pittsburgh MCG - Claire - Day 2

Our first full day in Yellowstone was incredible.  We saw so many awesome sites including multiple bison, past forest fire remains, the geyser “Old Faithful,” the hot spring “the Grand Prismatic,” and many more.  Our civic engagement activity today involved having a conversation with a complete stranger.  A few of our fellow Park Journeys participants had unpleasant interactions with people who were reluctant to speak with them.  Luckily, I found a very friendly woman from Elgin, Illinois who was a delight to talk to.  After our great day today, I am even more excited for the few days that remain.

Pittsburgh MCG - Kay (Mentor/Artist) - Day 2

So today I received an unexpected lesson about people. During our adventure of seeing the beautiful colors of the Grand Prismatic and Old Faithful we kind of did a “social experiment” where we had to approach strangers, introduce ourselves and tell them something about Yellowstone while being recorded on camera. It was very interesting seeing how people were willing and unwilling to give us a moment of their time. We were faced with some rejection, but we also had some successful interviews. In the end after reflecting on today’s events I realized that in life there will be people who aren’t going to react to you the way that you think they should and that isn’t necessarily a reflection of who you are, but a projection of how they may feel and their self-struggle. We don’t know how people may feel or what they are going through and we have to learn not to take that personally. We are all different and that is ok and when we face a situation like that, we shouldn’t get discouraged. We should take that as a positive lesson and try again.

Pittsburgh MCG - Keith (Mentor/Artist) - Day 2

The thing that made the biggest impact on me was watching the students engage strangers at Old Faithful to ask them about themselves and tell them about what we’re doing here. I was getting pretty frustrated by the number of people who were refusing to talk to the students in what I thought were really rude ways. Several students were brusquely turned down by three different people.

Then this evening we did a group exercise about our words and how we come across to other people. I was struck by how I had thought the worst of the people who didn’t talk to the students when really I don’t know anything about them or their situation. It was important to realize that they maybe were just having a bad day or had some other valid reason that made them not want to talk.

Pittsburgh MCG - Corey - Day 1

Today we took 2 flights to get here; when we got here I kind of knew that we had new challenges. But the thing that really took a load off my mind was the scenery, it is so silent and secluded and now I think everyone can be a team due to a trust exercise. We had to go through an obstacle course while blindfolded and the rest of our team had to guide us.

Pittsburgh MCG - Ivy - Day 1

The first day here was a new challenge for me. I haven’t gone on an airplane in about 10 years, and the whole process of getting to the airport and getting everything checked was stressful. Once we got out of the airport and we were on our way to the Overlook, I felt an extreme wave of excitement. Seeing the mountains and the expanse of the nature was amazing. After we initially got here, we explored and then did a team building activity. The activity was super fun and I loved it! It let us trust each other and get a good foot right off the start of the trip.

Pittsburgh MCG - Nikki - Day 1

So, here we are, the wind in my face and the smell of a sulfur shower lingering in my nose. How does one describe this feeling? They have to use all five senses, the sight of the mountains, of Bunsen Peak, to be climbed in but three days. And then there’s the smell, once the sulfur, which resembles the potent smell of eggs, wears away. It’s the smell of life, of summer, I’m breathing in the wind and a new soul to be claimed. And the feeling of cacti pines stuck in my foot, along for the pure joy of this ride. Although I don’t know how Yellowstone tastes yet! With luck, I will by tomorrow. I trust my team, my family of ten for these five days. I’d trust them blindfolded, with my two legs tied to all of theirs. They wouldn’t lead me down a cliff. Would they? I can’t escape this view, I can’t escape the feeling. I could stay here forever. Perhaps only nine kids will be riding home.