Repetition may seem boring. It can be a big reward to the humans in your care.
I’m getting started on my eighteenth annual retreat with The Rockford Aces. There are parts of this weekend retreat that have been the same – or nearly so – since the beginning. It helps me not having to reinvent the wheel every year, but it also helps my students to know what to expect.
They know to bring a special object to talk about.
They know what solo night will feel like.
They know to expect some raucous rounds of Werewolf and some Capture the Flag – with music literacy questions from me to those who end up in jail.
Knowing what to expect – in the terrain sense – makes the entire experience more enjoyable and survivable. It also helps the returning leaders become more able to lead the new students.
Do I change things? Certainly. But not without considering what that will mean to those who’ve experienced it before. That familiarity is essential to the change I’m trying to effect.