An Ending

And so I’m on that train. The keys have been handed back, the rooms cleared and deep cleaned, the suitcases packed. Those 3 running people on the platform left for dust by the mechanical might of the Swiss railway. It all points to one thing – it’s over.

I’ve made myself a bit of a reputation for indulging in many a speech, or for waxing lyrically about whatever topic I see fit. But it’s challenging to express what I’ve experienced in the past two and a half years. My time at KISC is indeed over, and so I seek to draw together a narrative of the time, to try and wrap it up so it can sit alongside my other life experiences. But an experience as big, as looming, as imposing as the very mountains upon which it was formed, will not sit quietly alongside it’s peers. It yells, it bangs it’s fists in defiance, it demands attention. It will not go quietly into that dark night.

For the past year, I’ve been Assistant Programme Director at Kandersteg International Scout Centre. As one of the more senior members of staff I’ve had a lot of responsibility, and indeed it’s been the most intense year of my life. The schedule of work can be crushing, the antiquated systems infuriating, the volume of tasks to be done overwhelming. But there was always one thing I had as my life vest, one aspect that helped me get through and achieve, and that was the people I was privileged to call my colleagues. I could happy replace the word colleagues with friends – in the small community we had created in that cute little Swiss village, your co workers are your flatmates, your friends, your lovers. If I thought I’d known bubbles before, then this was something else entirely. This physical intimacy leads to intimacy in thought too – in sharing ideas, philosophies, concepts. It breeds that sense of community often missing in our lives. It is fertile ground in which roots can be planted and grow strong.

To say that KISC changed me would be perhaps stating the obvious. It made me grow in ways I didn’t even know could exist within me. It taught me how honesty is the cornerstone of any relationship – terrifying, raw, emotionally filled honesty. I saw how much love it is possible to have within yourself, and how that too grows when shared. I’ve had loves come and go, return, transform.

Few people go to work with the active thought that they are making the world a worse place, but precious few go to work filled with that young, naive, hope that they are actively making the world a better place. I feel incredibly lucky to have had that feeling for the past year, and while of course I’m sad that this specific feeling has run its course (at least in this particular race), I’m very happy to have been part of something so special.

Until next time,

Andrew (UK)
Activity Guide 2015, High Adventure Assistant 2016, Assistant Programme Director 2017.