Wilderness Experience: Noland Trail - Jordan Duling

After literally running with a group of classmates in order to catch up with the beginning of the nature walk, needless to say, I was exhausted. My body ached... It was hot, muggy and just flat out uncomfortable. I had honestly not expected to gain much from our venture through the trails, however, there was a revelation. There was an order within our class on the trail, teacher was help above student. From this sense of community, however, grew Communitas. During the point of the excursion when the class was set off to venture as they please, our professor, six classmates and myself stuck together. There was a point when we came to a bridge that was screaming to us, "Jump over me!" One by one we leapt, each participant making their own marks in the dirt covering the bridge. When it came to our professor's go at the game, I realized... He is one of us.. a person, having a good time with other individuals all seeking the same goal. Every person was in a moment of pure experience. Further on the trail, after our professor had left the group to our own devices, communitas began to become more apparent. My six other comrades and I shared an extreme sense of togetherness during the remainder of our hike. No one was above anyone else, we had no sense of time or place.. we were all liminal together. Our journey on the Noland Trail is one that my classmates and I continue to reference when we discuss our friendship.