An Icebreaker Passes
There are days when we walk around with a small tear in our eyes the entire time. Days when we say goodbye to far too many people. Mario has a beautiful way to help. “Do not tell yourselves that you are leaving your friends. Remember that you have just met new ones.” Catherine, for her part, encourages us “not to be too sad,” while wiping away a tear, her voice tight with emotion. Sierra wrote a poem throughout the week, which she copied into the logbook and decided to share aloud with everyone. Wow, it is quite a breakfast.
We are all gathered in the large Murdock cabin at Cap Jaseux while the Coast Guard icebreaker passes in the distance. Ice again, but this time we have overcome it. That is when the slow ballet of goodbyes begins. We leave behind our guides Simon, Phil and Camille, as well as Mario and Isabelle. Once again we climb into our minibus, heading toward Quebec City.
A Bracelet of Words
Before continuing with these goodbyes, let me, as promised, share a few beautiful end of expedition traditions from Sur la pointe des pieds. The tradition of words, for example, is quite simple but always touching. Each person shares a word inspired by the experience. Elizabeth started with “unexpected,” but “in a positive way.” Laury shared “me. For the first time in a long time, I felt like myself.” Max found a “sense of purpose” in everything he accomplished during the week, while Ryder chose to remember the group’s “unity.” Gabriel felt “present,” and Sierra shared her vision of “richness,” far from monetary considerations. Annie Rose felt “inspired,” Camille felt “renewed,” Kiran felt “understood,” and finally Ian feels “gratitude.”
Since we are all gathered in a circle, Marie Michelle passes around a cord that everyone holds between their fingers. Once the circle is complete, she begins to tell the story of our entire adventure, with its highs, its lows, its laughter and its tears. And that small cord is now around my wrist, just like everyone else’s, as I write these words.
This small cord will accompany all the participants of this expedition as they return home, by car, by train, or by plane, and hopefully for many years to come. We part ways in Quebec City, in an anonymous parking lot. The sky is grey and the place itself hardly matters. We hug one another one last time. We say we will see each other again, that we will stay in touch. None of us knows what the future holds, but the memories of this adventure will remain forever, in our hearts and in this small bracelet.
Valérian
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