| By Annah-Grace Kemunto |
“STEP OUT OF YOUR COMFORT ZONE!” If you haven’t heard Babu say this then you haven’t yet had the ultimate COP experience. It all begins with defining your comfort zone. Maybe it’s your introverted nature, your unhealthy lifestyle and for others it’s something as simple as not liking the sun. The COP 2019 teambuilding made me step out of my comfort zone in multiple ways, as my mother would say it, by fire by force!
In the days approaching the teambuilding, we kept receiving hints relating to what to expect. The one that scared the wits out of me was when we were told to come dressed in comfortable sportswear. Well I’m sure you are wondering how that can even be scary. I realised that comfort actually was my comfort zone. And so I decided to be intentional about stepping out. At this point it was clear that I was going to break a sweat, why not enjoy it! I thought we’d go hiking but when we got to the venue I was so relieved. It was some sort of recreational park in Ruiru adjacent to a man-made lake. The calm waters gave it this aura of peace and tranquillity. It had been a while since I was out in nature just breathing with nothing like assignments on my mind. I remember saying to myself, “we made the right choice.” Seeing so many familiar faces after such a long time made me feel at home. Receiving one hug after another reminded me of all the love there is to go around COP.
With time we seamlessly divided ourselves into four groups. Team yellow: the calm guys, blue: the monochromatic ones (somehow almost all of them were in different shades of blue), green: the ones who did whatever it took to win and finally team red: the noisy team whose slogan was ‘Hatutapiga kelele!’
The activities were very involving and with time it was easy to know what kind of teammates one had. There were those who gave up 5 minutes into the activities. Others who were extreme pessimists and extreme optimists. Others who were adrenaline junkies eager to participate. Playtime was over and the smiles that once were ceased to exist. People’s skin tones had gone down a shade darker due to the scorching sun. Most, if not all, by this time had either sought shade under a tree or by the lake, feet in the water.
As IEBC (Babu) was tallying the results and all that was left to crown the day was food. We sat down in a circle with mouths busy enjoying the delicious delights. And we went round giving our COP experience testimonials. Most were centred on the theme of love and happiness. I however found one very intriguing. And he said, “We are all born. And we will all die. But what happens in between the time of our death and now is up to us. The best way is by giving that which we have been given freely by God; love. In COP I find that place where I can give endlessly the love that I have and receive it at the same time.” I resonated deeply with those words.
