| | ASPIRE Outward Bound Trip to Thompson Island with YLP! It happened at the end of May, but I just got pictures back so here it is =) This year's trip to Thomspon Island was really exciting. There were 9 girls in total - 4 juniors in high school, 1 senior in high school, 1 junior in college, and 3 young professionals. The ASPIRE YLP program is the Youth Leadership Program, which is a year-long leadership program specifically tailored to the cultural and developmental needs of Asian American high school girls in the greater Boston area. There's a competitive application process, and selected YLP scholars have an opportunity to gain and develop strong leadership skills through leadership training, hands-on experience, and mentorship. This outward bound trip to Thompson Island is one of their last events as a YLP scholar. The day was full of games, team building activities, and outdoor adventures (in the rain!!). With everyone decked out in rain jackets, we did a couple of name games first, then paired up to do some trust falls, then came up to what was called the Bird's Nest. There were four tall poles in the ground, with one huge net made of rope suspended in the air between all of the poles - with the edge of the "Bird's Nest" being over 6ft tall. The challenge was to get everyone safely into the bird's nest as a team, and then get everyone out. People pulled arms, stepped on thighs, stepped on shoulders, and everything else imaginable to get into this nest. It was a good challenge! 
The group in the Bird's Nest After that, we went to an area where there were two tight ropes suspended about 1.5 feet off the ground between two trees, that started off close together, and then slowly increased in distance from each other. People paired up and leaned in towards each other, palm against palm, while shuffling across the tight rope. Liz and I paired up for this one, and we were shaking uncontrollably the entire way... haha, we blame it on the not so tight tight rope *wobble wobble* =) but we almost got to the very end! I think there must have been at least 7 ft between our ropes at the end.  
Me and Liz! *wobble wobble* / other girls trying out the tight rope! Then, we went to another activity called the "Spider's Web", where there were two poles, with a web of string in between making holes just big enough for a person to go through. The team had to figure out a way for each person to go through a different hole, with only two holes near the bottom being available, and the other open ones were all on top. People had to lift others through a hole about four feet high, while the people that already passed through would help bring the legs through and shuffle the body over - all without touching any strings. We didn't have time to get everyone over, but we got 6 out of 9 over in about 20 minutes. We were pressed for time, because the guides wanted us to have plenty of time for the big afternoon adventure... My experience with the "Leap of Faith" was definitely one of the scariest moments in my life. It is a pole in the ground that is 33 ft high, and 6 inches in diameter. There are these large metal staples on the sides of the poles on random sides so you can climb to the top, and about 6 ft away from the top of the pole, there's a wire with a ball attached to it hanging. What you're supposed to do is climb up a short ladder to get to the section of the pole with the staples, then climb the 33ft high pole (think of a telephone pole), and then when you get to the top, you're supposed to balance yourself to stand straight on top of the pole... with a 6 inch diameter circle of wood underneath your feet, all while the pole is shaking, and it's raining.. then you're supposed to jump off of the pole and take your "leap of faith" and hit the ball that is hanging 6 ft away. Then before you actually leap, you're supposed to say something that you're going to leave behind... ex. fear of heights (yeah right). Climbing up wasn't too bad, but at the top, it felt like forever as you try to get your footing to balance on a shaking pole. Amazingly, every single girl made it to the top and stood on that pole!  
see the tall skinny pole on the left!??? 
listening to directions... I look scared =P  
Me getting harnessed up, and starting my climb!  
my leap of faith!... more like - HIT THE BALL!!!! / a great pic of Erica standing on top of the pole before jumping!  
Group picture at the end of the day =) / Liz, Erica, and Me before getting on the ferry back to Boston |
