Touchstone Journey was embedded in our Student Services Department’s two-day retreat for staff at the end of the school year. Our participants are all student support providers in many different capacities.

We took a Window of Time to reflect on our school year, as it presented itself with various challenges for the community that we serve and our personal lives. I wanted to ensure that I was creating a safe space for all of my colleagues where they could take time to reflect and plant a wellness seed to cultivate within themselves to continue to be a whole for our students upon our return back to school in the fall. This activity created a safe space for a collective community of staff members to acknowledge their personal needs to ensure they cultivate a culture of equity, connection, and wellness within themselves, as we are all servant leaders.

The creations were unstoppable and some Touchstones were naturally exchanged by members during the retreat as we were able to build community and a support system. Participants said:

“I need to give myself more gratitude because I tend to skip on myself. This Touchstone will remind me to plant and water my garden.”

“I need to power charge because I have given all my seeds away this school year and I need to harvest my own within me.”

“I need to power charge for my own well being because I am a resource map for my work colleagues and my people in my personal life. I need to remind myself to take a break and just listen to the sounds of the ocean.”

“I had many losses this school year and just to be here at the end of the school year, I need to show myself some gratitude.”