Creating an Alliance…. Building a Tribe

She said, “Sometimes I feel scattered, running in too many directions.  Sometimes I feel lost entirely.”

And they said, “We understand.”

She said, “I wish I was funny.”

And they said, “We think you are.”

She said, “The worst part is when you feel alone, and you FORGET what you have accomplished and you feel as though you are drowning under the weight of what you haven’t done….”

And they said, “We do that too.”

She said, ” I know what I really, really want to do….deep down in my soul.”

And they said, “How can we help?”

She took a deep breath and looked from one beautiful face to another.  She thought she knew why she had flown 21-hundred miles from St. Louis to Los Angeles….  why she had driven an additional few hours up the coast and was now seated in this….  this yurt….  surrounded by these brilliant women.

The goal was to learn…

to grow…

to stretch…

wasn’t it?

She was feeling rather Eat, Pray, Love-ish….

Maybe this trip to Ojai wasn’t about the goal after all, but the journey.

She had come ready to think, to prepare….to return to her own corner of the Internet and implement what she had learned…  But instead she contemplated, she ruminated, she devoured the  conversation, the exchanges, the friendships.

She had come ready to talk ‘giving back’ through blogging with two incredible women who live goodness and change and was instead inspired by the collective love that a group of brilliant minds can generate.

She sat outside by herself at one point, the creek a soundtrack to the experience….  trying to understand what was happening.  (She talks to herself a lot)

And she realized.

This.

Is a Tribe.

And this tribe of 31 women? Said nary a negative word over the course of 72 hours.  There was never a mention of what they didn’t like in this space – only what they love.  And who they love.  And why they love.

And from love is born a willingness to support.

And a desire to witness success.

And from love, support, and success, my friends….  you have yourselves a TRIBE.

And it is for this journey, this circle of support, that she traveled to Ojai.

A million thank yous to the women who made Ojai the magical experience that it was….  thank you to Leane, Jessica, Andrea and Cyn for taking the risk – to Moji and Paper Culture for understanding what we were trying to accomplish, to Lisa for the visible reminder of that magic that I have on my key chain every day and to each of the amazing women who created each moment of that journey with me.

I am extremely grateful.