I did get one brief reprieve out of the experiance. I remember seeing and drawing a picture of a small tender tree growing out of the middle of a burnt out tree trunk. We were to keep a journal and that drawing was the only signifacant moment my whole time there.That pictue I have held in my mind for years because it was the only sane moment of my experiance. It has been a metaphor for me in many ways.
That's one of the most beautiful images I've ever heard of. I wish I could see it.
I did not go LEAD because of physical difficulties until the last six weeks of my final year in-residence after a particularly awful block at Gunnison with TJ (not the dog, the man). Let me just suffice it to say that, upon my return and after Dr. Wierwille's death, JAL returned from the placement meetings at HQ and told me kindly (yes, kindly) that he had seen THOUSANDS of LEAD appraisals and mine was the worst ... I went Leave-of-Absence from the Corps and never went back ...
Despite such a dismal appraisal, I have thought many times during my life since then when bad stuff came up to endure that, "I survived LEAD ... I can survive this."
I have nothing nice to say about any of the staff except Donnie Smith ... he was kind and Godly. The others seemed to me to be arrogant arseholes.
Well, lessee here. It was May of 1985 for me, and it happened in the Black Hills of South Dakota. So far, so good.
Here enters the *variables* that make my story (somewhat) interesting. :)
I had just gotten divorced, and decided that the *drive time* out to the Black Hills (alone) would help clear my head a bit about pertinent issues in my life.
Chr*s Granl*ch was the local coordinator here in Duluth, and told me I needed to pick up *so and so* in another town in southern Minnesota, and give him a ride there to LEAD. I was informed the guy was hurting, and needed to get this healing experience. I refused, and said I needed my time alone.
Btw -- Chr*s and every last believer from town here (besides myself) hitch-hiked to the to the LEAD experience, and he was ....ed off at me for driving -- but wtf??? Why stick your thumb out, when you can drive? :D
I figured -- heck with this other guy who needs a ride. He might be hurting, but I was too back then, and I sure didn't need to hear another sob story, when I was contemplating my own.
We all met in Rapid City, parked cars in the local shopping mall lot, and high-tailed it for the foot hills.
Chr*s especially was ticked off that he was *relegated* to a group of folks he had never met before, and had no control over. :D
All of a sudden, he wasn't *man #1* any more, and the look on his face, showed the hurt big time. He wanted all of us from the local area to be in the *twig* area that he had control of, yet he had no control of us as a group, at that time.
We did our *duos*, we did our rock climbing, and we did the rappeling.
And then our session was cut short by a uniformed Park Ranger (blue suit, and shiny gun on hip) who was looking for the guy in charge of us all (I honestly do forget who that was now --- Kevin somebody-or-other), to let us know that Hdqtrs. called to tell us docvic passed away.
Seems that L.E.A.D. was a traveling "Limb locale" (or something like that), and they got news, as needed. Well we got the news that day (May 20, 1985) -- and the LEAD leaders, decided that it was over, and we were all going home.
Btw --- by the time of the return trip, I took on some riders coming home.
They were tired of hitch-hiking, and I had met my devils and conquered.
I went 2 years before you, and I thought MY review would go down as The Worst, with a capital 'T' and a capital 'W' ...
My first vacation on L.E.A.D., described above as the worst, earned me the blessing of a repeat vacation at Tinnietown, at the commandment of the most high lcm & TJ the WonderFlossMan.
I am thankful this day to have not been at the bottom of the list, which is the very one God will be using to determine our eternal rewards...
LEAD, LMAO! What all of that had to do with God, other than being in a beautiful setting created by God, was beyond me. Yeah, the sweat lodge thing was a little weird.
Overall, I enjoyed LEAD at the time. Especially the Australian rappel, what a rush! It was definately demanding but a fond memory for me. I can still see the roadrunner on the other side of the road while hitching. The scenery of the El Capitan mtns was beautiful.
The first time, me and the parnter got back 17 or so hrs early. Two gentlemen in a nice sedan picked us up. I remember noticing they both had rolex watches. I fell asleep in the car while my partner was talking with them. I woke up and we were nearing Lubbock. Off the route! These guys took us to the airport and put us on a plane!
On my second trip I got reamed by one of the coordinators at the end of my duo. Their question had something to do with my communing with God during the duo. They were convinced that I should have heard him more or something like that while on the duo. I told them I could hear God in a city just as well as I could in the woods. That turned out to be the wrong answer, LOL!
The corps coor wasn't very impressed with the plane ride or the city vs duo reply. :lol:
I remember doing what was supposed to be the second hardest of five climbs in NM. It was really harder than number one, except for an inverted ledge on that number one climb. As I struggles up number two, I heard the climber on number one yell up triumphantly, "I've made it to THE LEDGE>" ... after which came bsck the call from above, "Well make it OVER the ledge."
Hitchhiking back was an adventure and a half for me. Due to an odd number, I was the only one heading back to HQ alone. Made it on time but didnt come back with all the money I was supposed to come back with. May have been one of a few factors in my LOA a short time later.
yeah, i did that too. actually it was nothing compared to something gerald wren put together for us the first year in the eighth corps, when we did the p.o.w. camp thing - more about that some other time. as for l.e.a.d, it was nowhere near as sadistic, and the rappelling and climbing this one vertical rock face were a lot of fun and very memorable. however i think those running the show might have had some issues with women, because they were harder on them and managed to make just about every one of them cry more than once. the part that was quite unexpectedly the best for me was that after building hooches, we each had 24 hours of total solitude. this was a profound relief from all the relentless indoctrination back at emporia, and i was sorry when it was over.
the part that was quite unexpectedly the best for me was that after building hooches, we each had 24 hours of total solitude. this was a profound relief from all the relentless indoctrination back at emporia, and i was sorry when it was over.
I guess you are referring to the solo...we had 48 hours at it and yes, it was nice and quiet. We had good equipment too...I was comfy sleeping despite the water in my bottle freezing completely solid.
Another fun part for me came after my solo hitchhike back to HQ...upon arriving late Saturday evening, I pulled a solo pantry raid. That's pantry rain, meaning food...and had a nice post Thanksgiving feast. It wasnt as daring as it sounds because what I raided was a store of Thanksgiving leftovers that had been marked for LEAD teturnees, so had I been caught, there may not have been any flak.
I loved LEAD, both times at Tinnie. I loved the challenges, the pressure, the fact that I had to control my appetite, and I loved the challenge of "being a good camp jack" and serving others around the fire and the tents when I would rather have been napping due to being physically tired. I built some great friendships during that time, and I think it was a great program. I do know that there was what I called "The People Factor" which got in the way of things that are right, but overall, during my two particular LEAD expeditions, I loved it, and was thankful for it. I still draw upon the challenges and the things I learned from it then until this very day.
And so, as Forrest Gump would say; "And that's all I have to say about that...
I loved LEAD, both times at Tinnie. I loved the challenges, the pressure, the fact that I had to control my appetite
I guess I really didn't think of being hungry while I was there. It was after I got back to HQ that I remembered I was hungry and pulled off my near midnight pantry raid. Of course a large part of that could have been the long solo hitchhiking journey.
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Nato
That's one of the most beautiful images I've ever heard of. I wish I could see it.
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ToadFriend
I did not go LEAD because of physical difficulties until the last six weeks of my final year in-residence after a particularly awful block at Gunnison with TJ (not the dog, the man). Let me just suffice it to say that, upon my return and after Dr. Wierwille's death, JAL returned from the placement meetings at HQ and told me kindly (yes, kindly) that he had seen THOUSANDS of LEAD appraisals and mine was the worst ... I went Leave-of-Absence from the Corps and never went back ...
Despite such a dismal appraisal, I have thought many times during my life since then when bad stuff came up to endure that, "I survived LEAD ... I can survive this."
I have nothing nice to say about any of the staff except Donnie Smith ... he was kind and Godly. The others seemed to me to be arrogant arseholes.
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dmiller
Well, lessee here. It was May of 1985 for me, and it happened in the Black Hills of South Dakota. So far, so good.
Here enters the *variables* that make my story (somewhat) interesting. :)
I had just gotten divorced, and decided that the *drive time* out to the Black Hills (alone) would help clear my head a bit about pertinent issues in my life.
Chr*s Granl*ch was the local coordinator here in Duluth, and told me I needed to pick up *so and so* in another town in southern Minnesota, and give him a ride there to LEAD. I was informed the guy was hurting, and needed to get this healing experience. I refused, and said I needed my time alone.
Btw -- Chr*s and every last believer from town here (besides myself) hitch-hiked to the to the LEAD experience, and he was ....ed off at me for driving -- but wtf??? Why stick your thumb out, when you can drive? :D
I figured -- heck with this other guy who needs a ride. He might be hurting, but I was too back then, and I sure didn't need to hear another sob story, when I was contemplating my own.
We all met in Rapid City, parked cars in the local shopping mall lot, and high-tailed it for the foot hills.
Chr*s especially was ticked off that he was *relegated* to a group of folks he had never met before, and had no control over. :D
All of a sudden, he wasn't *man #1* any more, and the look on his face, showed the hurt big time. He wanted all of us from the local area to be in the *twig* area that he had control of, yet he had no control of us as a group, at that time.
We did our *duos*, we did our rock climbing, and we did the rappeling.
And then our session was cut short by a uniformed Park Ranger (blue suit, and shiny gun on hip) who was looking for the guy in charge of us all (I honestly do forget who that was now --- Kevin somebody-or-other), to let us know that Hdqtrs. called to tell us docvic passed away.
Seems that L.E.A.D. was a traveling "Limb locale" (or something like that), and they got news, as needed. Well we got the news that day (May 20, 1985) -- and the LEAD leaders, decided that it was over, and we were all going home.
Btw --- by the time of the return trip, I took on some riders coming home.
They were tired of hitch-hiking, and I had met my devils and conquered.
That's my L.E.A.D. story. :)
David
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tomtuttle1
FriendlyFroggy, your sharing has set me free.
I went 2 years before you, and I thought MY review would go down as The Worst, with a capital 'T' and a capital 'W' ...
My first vacation on L.E.A.D., described above as the worst, earned me the blessing of a repeat vacation at Tinnietown, at the commandment of the most high lcm & TJ the WonderFlossMan.
I am thankful this day to have not been at the bottom of the list, which is the very one God will be using to determine our eternal rewards...
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BackForty
LEAD, LMAO! What all of that had to do with God, other than being in a beautiful setting created by God, was beyond me. Yeah, the sweat lodge thing was a little weird.
Overall, I enjoyed LEAD at the time. Especially the Australian rappel, what a rush! It was definately demanding but a fond memory for me. I can still see the roadrunner on the other side of the road while hitching. The scenery of the El Capitan mtns was beautiful.
The first time, me and the parnter got back 17 or so hrs early. Two gentlemen in a nice sedan picked us up. I remember noticing they both had rolex watches. I fell asleep in the car while my partner was talking with them. I woke up and we were nearing Lubbock. Off the route! These guys took us to the airport and put us on a plane!
On my second trip I got reamed by one of the coordinators at the end of my duo. Their question had something to do with my communing with God during the duo. They were convinced that I should have heard him more or something like that while on the duo. I told them I could hear God in a city just as well as I could in the woods. That turned out to be the wrong answer, LOL!
The corps coor wasn't very impressed with the plane ride or the city vs duo reply. :lol:
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Lifted Up
I remember doing what was supposed to be the second hardest of five climbs in NM. It was really harder than number one, except for an inverted ledge on that number one climb. As I struggles up number two, I heard the climber on number one yell up triumphantly, "I've made it to THE LEDGE>" ... after which came bsck the call from above, "Well make it OVER the ledge."
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Lifted Up
Hitchhiking back was an adventure and a half for me. Due to an odd number, I was the only one heading back to HQ alone. Made it on time but didnt come back with all the money I was supposed to come back with. May have been one of a few factors in my LOA a short time later.
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lex1
yeah, i did that too. actually it was nothing compared to something gerald wren put together for us the first year in the eighth corps, when we did the p.o.w. camp thing - more about that some other time. as for l.e.a.d, it was nowhere near as sadistic, and the rappelling and climbing this one vertical rock face were a lot of fun and very memorable. however i think those running the show might have had some issues with women, because they were harder on them and managed to make just about every one of them cry more than once. the part that was quite unexpectedly the best for me was that after building hooches, we each had 24 hours of total solitude. this was a profound relief from all the relentless indoctrination back at emporia, and i was sorry when it was over.
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excathedra
i built a lovely hooch but then i didn't fit in it
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Lifted Up
I guess you are referring to the solo...we had 48 hours at it and yes, it was nice and quiet. We had good equipment too...I was comfy sleeping despite the water in my bottle freezing completely solid.
Another fun part for me came after my solo hitchhike back to HQ...upon arriving late Saturday evening, I pulled a solo pantry raid. That's pantry rain, meaning food...and had a nice post Thanksgiving feast. It wasnt as daring as it sounds because what I raided was a store of Thanksgiving leftovers that had been marked for LEAD teturnees, so had I been caught, there may not have been any flak.
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J0nny Ling0
I loved LEAD, both times at Tinnie. I loved the challenges, the pressure, the fact that I had to control my appetite, and I loved the challenge of "being a good camp jack" and serving others around the fire and the tents when I would rather have been napping due to being physically tired. I built some great friendships during that time, and I think it was a great program. I do know that there was what I called "The People Factor" which got in the way of things that are right, but overall, during my two particular LEAD expeditions, I loved it, and was thankful for it. I still draw upon the challenges and the things I learned from it then until this very day.
And so, as Forrest Gump would say; "And that's all I have to say about that...
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Lifted Up
I guess I really didn't think of being hungry while I was there. It was after I got back to HQ that I remembered I was hungry and pulled off my near midnight pantry raid. Of course a large part of that could have been the long solo hitchhiking journey.
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