![[Image Description: Two MCC members taking a brief break; one is sitting on a rock, the other is standing nearby. They are both in their uniforms, looking out at the expansive, mountain view surrounding them.]](https://cdn.firespring.com/images/c3f85e97-43a9-4810-8081-e8e6338173d0.jpeg)
In the 6 weeks of my term with MCC, I’ve found one thing is almost always true: the unexpected will occur anytime.
Many of our hitches took place with last-minute changes, unknown job sites, brand new project partners, and enough uneven terrain and mud to keep you falling on your butt. From the beginning, our program manager Allie warned our cohort of the unexpected nature of this work and offered the motto ‘embrace the suck.’ This stuck with me even more than all the mud I found myself stuck in!
My crew, in particular, endured a lot of ‘suck’ this summer season. We are the smallest crew in GY and have faced many strange encounters, medical emergencies, injuries, vehicle trouble, and this week, golf ball-sized hail.
It started as a normal afternoon of South Dakota thunder rumbles and no rain, when suddenly I couldn’t believe my eyes as I watched what seemed like stones of ice plummet out of the sky. My crew and I very calmly continued to eat our grilled cheese under the safety of our surfer tent. Letting out giggles of laughter between bites while making silly jokes, of course, this would happen to us!
The hail eventually slowed down but was quickly followed by a wretched thunderstorm (and more scattered hail). Eventually, we decided it was wise to evacuate the camp. We threw our hard hats on and ran for our tents to grab our sleeping bags. We quickly hopped in our rig, drove to the Forest Service bunkhouse, dodging the hail, road cattle, and Sturgis rally bikers.
In the rig, we did what we always do when unpredictable events occur and played our big three playlist:
First, we love it with “I love it” by Icona Pop + Charlie XCX
Next, we let it linger with “Linger” by The Cranberries
Then we get a lil’ dancing out with “Banana Man” by Tally Hall
It’s the unmatched cure-all, mood booster, for anything that has ever and could ever go wrong on a hitch. We made it safely to the bunk house, where we were able to de-mud ourselves with warm showers and slept soundly in the safety of real shelter.
While this season did not go the way that I had hoped, one thing is for sure: my crew and I have gotten pretty darn good at embracing the suck!
Thank you, Black Hills Forest Service, for making sure we had somewhere safe to get out of the unforeseen weather conditions!
