Alumni

Today we had a meeting at Art Awakenings for the "alumni" of the group--those who are getting discharged. Sukey and Tina want us to create our own group and keep our friendships going. I'm in favor of that idea. We discussed a lot of different ideas and a lot of different issues to work out. We have two more meetings scheduled: one on Saturday, that was already scheduled, and one next Thursday.

As we were deciding where to meet on Thursday, a lot of ideas were thrown out. One lady says, "We should all meet at Village Inn and have some drinks and pie." That didn't sound very fun to me, especially since our group isn't just socialization, but also getting out and doing something. So I suggested we meet at a local park. There are a TON of parks around here. Everyone liked that idea and we threw out suggestions about which park to go to. A few people had decided on a park that was a little further out from the Art Awakenings studio. That was fine with me, though a little more difficult to get to. The thinking was, if the weather goes sour on Thursday we could go to the nearby library at that park. Just as everyone was agreeing on that park, I turned to one of the ladies next to me and asked her if it would be difficult for her to get there. (I knew it would--she lives on the opposite side of the studio from the park they had chosen.) I suggested a park closer to the studio that everyone could find and that was a little more centrally located for those with transportation issues. And it's near a big shopping district, so if the weather goes sour we could go sit in a coffee shop or something. It was a great compromise and everyone was happy with the idea.

Everyone is raw with emotion right now. Nobody wants to head up this group, we all just want someone to keep us going. I'm not as raw as everyone else about leaving. I was planning on leaving and I was okay with the idea. It's been a little difficult, but I'm not regretting my decision (most of the time). Sukey talked to us about how we all need to be responsible for running our group and we each need to contribute. But obviously, someone will eventually have to be the leader. I was trying to think of who that might be. One or two names came to mind, but one of the people I was thinking of expressed that she doesn't want to run the group. The other person I thought of wasn't there today but she has said in the past that she doesn't want to lead the group. I said long ago that I didn't want to lead this group. Nobody wants to lead it!

Well during the meeting I thought about the need for someone to lead the group. I thought about volunteering. But that's a huge commitment, and for me to volunteer in front of everyone would mean no going back. After the meeting I talked to Sukey about leading the group. She was so excited about that idea. I was excited, too. The one thing I made sure to tell her was that I need someone else as a back-up in case I need a little time off. Sukey said there should be two people. That's even better.

So, to conclude my story of the day, Sukey agreed to help me learn how to lead the group and...that's what I'm going to do. Yikes! But this will be a good thing. It gives me something to do with my time, something to look forward to and something to be responsible for. Purpose.