The afternoon of May 8th, I was driving west on that familiar stretch of I-80 towards State College. Deep inside my head, most of the travel was a blur. Luckily, I only had a hundred and four miles to my destination — a short distance by today’s standards. I was only home for two weeks and I was leaving again. Somewhere between excitement and sadness, I was opening a new chapter. In some respects, I was familiar with the plot. In other regards, it was a whole new experience. I wondered what I would get out of this opportunity. In the end, I discovered that it wasn’t so much about me.
The destination was Milroy, Pennsylvania. A semi-familiar place, I had driven though this small town many times in years past. It’s kind of the halfway point in the southern study area between Bald Eagle and Rothrock State Forests. Never thought I would live here. In an odd building that was once a restaurant, I would rest my head these summer nights. When the window unit wasn’t roaring, I would hear the clop of horse hoofs as they pulled their buggies down the road. The sign still stands high. “Trail’s End Steak House and Buffet,” it says. I was forewarned of this strange place but reassured that the interior was freshly remodeled and nice. Logistically speaking, the location makes the perfect sense. Although I hoped to live in State College so I could be closer to friends and colleagues, this place would prove a suitable field house for my crew this summer.
The Field House
The Sign 
Kitchen 
Living Room 
Bedroom 
Bathroom
Today however, I was meeting Jacob, my counterpart of the northern study area. Besides a few texts to arrange this rendezvous, I knew little about him and he probably knew less about me. We were starting work a few days early for training before our crews arrived. I looked forward to getting to know him over the next few weeks.
After we exchange pleasantries, I carried the few belongings I brought and took inventory of the items we would immediately need for the next few days. We decided to do some shopping for food and supplies. I felt slightly odd hanging out with this strange twenty-something. Nothing he did, I attributed it to the experience I had with my crew last winter and the fact that we just met. Despite this sentiment, we got along well while running these errands and decided to grab dinner and drinks at a local establishment that evening.
We agreed to try Smitty’s down the street. Although a sports bar, I found the ambiance quite favorable. I wondered if my crew would frequent here this summer. The two ladies behind the bar were attentive and sociable and there was just enough of a crowd to make it interesting. Jacob and I talked about our backgrounds and interests. Although I am trained in wildlife science, we shared a common fascination for botany and plant ecology. Not much time passed before our conversation piqued the curiosity of some of the regulars. Bob and Mark were an interesting couple of fellows. Bob was the most boisterous of the two and bought shots for the four of us. Mark was more reserved, an intellectual thinker, and a family man. From what I gathered, they are in the area often. Bob works on some type of high towers and is from the area and Mark does some kind of food delivery with open kiosks. After Bob left, Mark talked to Jacob and me for a while — talking most about family and aspirations and asking about our jobs. We didn’t stay late but we stayed later than intended. Tomorrow was a big day and it was time to get some sleep.
As I lay in bed back at the field house, I thought the summer was off to a good start. Although strange, I was happy to have decent accommodations and a comfortable bed. I was looking forward to starting the first day of work. I thought of my crew and wondered how the field season would turn out. As I drifted off for a good night’s sleep, I wished that I was in bed with my wife back home.
Aside from onboarding activities that morning, most of the day was spent in a meeting room. Most of what I heard that day was a refresher. There were some differences in protocol and the addition of data management. What troubled me most was the schedule. In times past, I remember the crews complaining that they didn’t have enough work. While the north had an easy schedule, my crew was going to be tested. Even if my team could perform as efficiently as Danielle and I had in the past, I still doubted that the workload could be accomplished when factoring all the facets of fieldwork. I expressed my reservation and described the schedule as ambitious. Although I knew we would be working hard, I didn’t know that it would border on the impossible.
In that moment, I hoped my crew were hard workers and they were motivated to get the job done. I thought how I would perform as a leader and inspire them to do their best. Without meeting them, I already cared for them. I took my role seriously. In prior months, I prepared myself the best I could for this position. I reflected upon my attributes as a leader. I researched the many styles of leadership and how to motivate and inspire people. I thought about why I was leading and why someone would want to follow me. Throughout the field season, “why” laid heavily on my mind.
The next two days were spent in the field. Danielle, Amanda (a new grad student), Jacob, and I practiced setting up vegetation sampling plots and surveying them. I remembered the protocol and my plant identification skills were returning to me. It certainly helped that I hung out with my botanist friend the week before. I enjoyed working with Danielle again and the four of us had fun. Jacob and I were ready to receive our crews next week and looked forward to meeting everyone.
The next two weeks were focused on training the crews. I would be reacquainted with the old characters and introduced to the new players in this plot. Most importantly, my “why” would begin to take shape.