We are in the middle of a retreat at work. Wednesday evening, all day Thursday and all day Friday. I think it could really help --that's the point of it. But it is really hard to do.
I won't go into detail here about work but will just say this:
Two years ago we blew the place up by having a strike and by whistle blowing to the accrediting commission (figuratively, not literally!). We had good, but vague, ideas about what we wanted to build from the rubble, but no blue prints. Then there was a reorganization and we had many people replaced. So the new people are here with us in the rubble, without history and not aware of the ideas of what we want to build and they have no idea why we blew it up in the first place.
This retreat is about getting the building plans and blue prints done. It is about agreeing what needs to be built and cleaning up the demolition rubble before we call the building contractors. It has been hard and it has been emotional. It is really difficult to blow up something you really care about, even if you know that the demo is necessary before things can be renovated. It is also difficult to believe, when you are standing in the midst of the rubble, that you could actually get a new thing built.
I am going to bed. One more day of the retreat tomorrow. I am exhausted because I care so much what happens to this place where I have spent 21 years--my whole career. I hope we are up to the challenge. The cost of failing is too big to think about.
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