It was reaffirming that through experience comes genuine relationship and connection. This reaffirmation happened while on the boys camping trip (Trust Sequence) where we experienced three days of camping, fishing, laughter, tears, eating, growing, and building of relationship. 

While in the midst of a flowing river and the autumn leaves on a crisp fall morning, my thoughts were completely consumed by standing next to three boys who had spent the past six weeks learning to develop trust through the experience of fly fishing.  As we stood on the bank of the river, one of the boys pointed to the swift moving water and verbalized that this is where the fish liked to be.  They all became eager and excited to implement the techniques which they had worked so hard to learn and cast their line upon the current.  With anxious eye I watched as they each spread out and began the art of fly fishing.  In the following minutes, one boy turned his head and made eye contact with me as to acknowledge with a simple glance that the journey had provided him with some sense of worth and ability that no one could take away.

As the day passed, we discussed the hours of time spent attempting to catch but a single trout and to my surprise the boys' responses were unanimous the same, "The entire experience was more than the result."  The boys genuinely reflected that the process and experience of learning and practicing was the building of confidence and the belief in oneself. They actually enjoyed the journey rather than being solely fixated on the result of catching the fish.  They were able to share that life was similar in that they would intentionally sabotage the journey so the end result (intimacy, acceptance) would never come. By the fire in the evenings, many of the boys were able to journal about what it means to feel trust and to experience trusting others through sharing fears, hurt, pain, hopes, and dreams. 

The time was filled with tipping canoes, lost gear, wet clothes, enormous smiles, priceless memories, vulnerability by the campfire, and the undeniable feeling of connection.  This connection was best captured in the ride home where a bus full of teenage boys and male staff laughed together about the "Whoppers" that were caught, the moment when staff fell in the water, having a hot cup of cider on a cold morning, and who ended up being the dirtiest.  Along with the laughter came the connective joy of singing familiar songs and seeing smiles which surpassed the hurt, pain, anger, and difficulty which many struggle with. 

The camping trip was an experience I will not soon forget. To see self worth begin to grow as to give way to gratitude, is truly exciting and meaningful for so many different reasons, but the number one reason is that gratitude is the main ingredient in being able to experience joy.  The reason that the camping trip was so great was because of the joy that these boys felt.