Foundations built and now off into the field (literally)

The last several days have seen a lot of fun, challenges and emotional learning. I am now exhausted, but feeling very calm, much more so than were it the end of a week in the office. Our 4 hosts, Brett (lucky chap who gets me - I will profile him in a future blog if he's agreeable), Tracy, Joy and Ian have been fantastic since arriving a couple of days ago. I was in awe of the things they had done and the passion they carried inside them. They rather rashly hope to learn from us, so no pressure then...

To help put a few names and faces to the gang of 9, here they are. From left to right: Oriana, Jonathan (my other half at Dreamwall), Charles, Linda, me, Andy, Geoff, Richard and Melanie (aka Camilla). Bear with me on the poor photos as they are from the mobile.

We spent a lot of time sharing our hopes and fears and setting some ground rules within our team of Brett, Jonathan and me (actually, I think someone has been missing from this session and that is Tash, Brett's wife; this is a team of 4). These rules involve straight talking, remembering to do "that soft stuff" (spot the unreconstructed blokes), me stopping those two having it all sorted by the first afternoon, Jonathan leading us in morning meditation etc... Not all of these are entirely true. I am sharing a flat with Jonathan, something that might come as a rude awakening to both of us.

Day 1 on-site is Monday and our task for the day is for us to arrange an off-site for next weekend and to do all the planning, calling of families and general graft. If we forget anything there will be a bus load of kids looking at Jonathan and me in an unimpressed manner. This involves camping and walking through rivers, leading the kids and living the Dreamwall bubble (a "Brettism") - the weather forecast looks less than promising. Our shared plan is to go for full and fast immersion, seeing what Dreamwall does at first hand, and also meeting the stakeholder groups and funders and grasping the vision. Oh yes, and I am going to prison...