Ken’s office had a retreat this past weekend in Tenerife, Canary Islands, for all of the consultants and their partners with the theme of “passion & leadership”. Since Ken worked out of country most of last week, I boarded the charter flight with his peers early Thursday morning, and Ken caught up with us on the island Thursday night. The weekend was full of activities from classes to special dinners to outdoor adventures. The company offered a selection of events for all of Friday that revolved around pursuing one’s passions and featured a professional from that field. Saturday, after a morning session for all of the consultants, we chose from a variety of outdoor and leisure activities. Ken and I opted for a 2 hour kayak adventure in the ocean. Our sore muscles and burned skinned made us question a bit why we chose kayaking, but ultimately, we had a great time. The company finished off the weekend with a beach party Saturday night full of entertainment and a slideshow highlighting the weekend’s activities.
Friday’s events gave the most impact and memorable moments for many people, Ken and I included. Ken left with a group early Friday morning for an all day hike to the top of Mount El Teide which is an active though dormant volcano and is the highest point in Spain. The conditions for the hike were almost unbearable. It rained throughout the day, and by the time they neared the summit, the wind blew so hard that it nearly knocked them all down. In Ken’s words, “We stared into the eyes of the beast, heard him roar with 100 kph wind, and turned away 180 meters from the summit.” Although his group didn’t reach the very top, they finished the day with a true sense of accomplishment that they were able to go as far as they did inspite of nature’s tough conditions. The experience also allowed them to bond in ways that working in an office can’t.
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While Ken spent his day climbing the peak, I took an all day class with a professional photographer. I finished the day with a huge boost in my confidence as a photographer and as a French speaker. The photographer who taught the class is Belgian and speaks very little English, so naturally he prefered to speak French the whole day. As most of the people in my group are either native French speakers or are fluent in it, they did not have a problem with this. I on the other hand felt a bit nervous as to whether I would understand everything, but after a few minutes into the class, I knew that my French lessons were paying off. I felt so proud to grasp the concepts and thoughts…in another language! The other excitement came from the praise of the photographer as we viewed everyone’s photos from our location shoots at the end of the day. He seemed most impressed with several of my shots and praised them even after I left the room. One of the guys in the class knew that I sold some of my photos recently, and after hearing the photographer continue to express his interest in my pictures, my classmate finally broke down and told the photographer that I am a “professional”. Although I struggle calling myself that, it feels great that others can see me as that…including a true professional photographer!
The weekend definitely brought refreshment and excitement for all of us…and helped us find more of our “passions” from within.
Ken’s office had a retreat this past weekend in Tenerife, Canary Islands, for all of the consultants and their partners with the theme of “passion & leadership”. Since Ken worked out of country most of last week, I boarded the charter flight with his peers early Thursday morning, and Ken caught up with us on the island Thursday night. The weekend was full of activities from classes to special dinners to outdoor adventures. The company offered a selection of events for all of Friday that revolved around pursuing one’s passions and featured a professional from that field. Saturday, after a morning session for all of the consultants, we chose from a variety of outdoor and leisure activities. Ken and I opted for a 2 hour kayak adventure in the ocean. Our sore muscles and burned skinned made us question a bit why we chose kayaking, but ultimately, we had a great time. The company finished off the weekend with a beach party Saturday night full of entertainment and a slideshow highlighting the weekend’s activities.
Friday’s events gave the most impact and memorable moments for many people, Ken and I included. Ken left with a group early Friday morning for an all day hike to the top of Mount El Teide which is an active though dormant volcano and is the highest point in Spain. The conditions for the hike were almost unbearable. It rained throughout the day, and by the time they neared the summit, the wind blew so hard that it nearly knocked them all down. In Ken’s words, “We stared into the eyes of the beast, heard him roar with 100 kph wind, and turned away 180 meters from the summit.” Although his group didn’t reach the very top, they finished the day with a true sense of accomplishment that they were able to go as far as they did inspite of nature’s tough conditions. The experience also allowed them to bond in ways that working in an office can’t.
.jpg)
While Ken spent his day climbing the peak, I took an all day class with a professional photographer. I finished the day with a huge boost in my confidence as a photographer and as a French speaker. The photographer who taught the class is Belgian and speaks very little English, so naturally he prefered to speak French the whole day. As most of the people in my group are either native French speakers or are fluent in it, they did not have a problem with this. I on the other hand felt a bit nervous as to whether I would understand everything, but after a few minutes into the class, I knew that my French lessons were paying off. I felt so proud to grasp the concepts and thoughts…in another language! The other excitement came from the praise of the photographer as we viewed everyone’s photos from our location shoots at the end of the day. He seemed most impressed with several of my shots and praised them even after I left the room. One of the guys in the class knew that I sold some of my photos recently, and after hearing the photographer continue to express his interest in my pictures, my classmate finally broke down and told the photographer that I am a “professional”. Although I struggle calling myself that, it feels great that others can see me as that…including a true professional photographer!
The weekend definitely brought refreshment and excitement for all of us…and helped us find more of our “passions” from within.
1 comment:
wow. i'm just catching up with your blog after a long time w/o my own 'puter. y'all have been busy! too fun for your photography class. Can't wait to see the professional pics you take of your week here! :)
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