On Saturday night, my girlfriend and I met up with several friends on Ocean Beach in San Diego. We thought it’d be fun to have a nice bonfire on the beach, cook some dinner, and enjoy some nice conversation.
My girlfriend and I brought the bulk on the supplies: two big bunches of firewood, matches, plates, utensils, cups, sausages, buns, condiments, lemonade, roasting forks, marshmallows, chocolate, graham crackers, trash bags, a frisbee, sweatshirts and blankets, sautéed onions, sautéed peppers, water, a flashlight, beach chairs, etc., etc., etc…
So it was a lot of stuff.
The walk from the car to the fire pit was tough. I had already loaded up a large backpack with many supplies, and still had a few other bags tangling on my sides. I lifted a bunch of firewood up to each shoulder and marched down the beach.
Needless to say, I was quite winded when we finally arrived, but the view was simply too gorgeous.
After taking a few minutes to set up our chairs and do a little organization, my girlfriend and I played frisbee for a few moments while we waited for others to arrive. They brought a few side dishes to share, adding to our food bounty. We laughed at each other’s poor frisbee attempts, pausing every few moments to look at the incredible sunset taking place before us.
Soon, I got busy starting the fire. It became evident, in comparing with those around us, that we didn’t exactly have a “bonfire” as much as we had a nice “campfire.” Our flames lacked the abundance and height of the surrounding pits, but still provided just enough warmth for the nice San Diego October breeze. The lower flames also allowed some better cooking and we quickly got to work with the sausages. Soon, we all just sat around the fire, eating some good food, and telling fun stories.
By the time we began making S’Mores, we had all already commented on how much fun we were each having. It was my girlfriend’s first beach bonfire, and we actually learned that was true for a few more attendees. I ended up making the first S’More that one of her friends had ever tasted.
About 3 hours after we first arrived, the flames started to finally die down, and we began to pack up our things. We all agreed we needed to do this again–it was simply too much fun to make it a one time occurrence. Packing up was much easier. Even though we still had quite a bit of food left over, my backpack was significantly lighter. The firewood died down to simple ash left in the pit, and our full garbage bag found its way to the nearby beach garbage can.
We came in with many supplies, but we left with lighter bags.
Still, I think we each gained a great deal in the experience.
As we drove away from the beach, it occurred to me that for many of us–this is the purpose of this year in our leadership positions. We need to bring in our best, march to a destination, and provide a great experience for our community. When our term is done, we need to clean up after ourselves, laying the foundation for the next group of leaders to take it to the next level. If we’ve done our jobs right, we’ll positively impact those around us, and we may even gain a great experience for ourselves in the process.
Enjoy this leadership journey that your on. The memories can be pretty awesome : )