How has your process changed over time?

Really embracing the uncertainty, at first it was really shocking to come to site the next week and all the plans had changed, and there’s a new kitchen building, the garden has been moved, and someone adopted a duck

• But there’s a real beauty to the changes, it reminds us to stay present, to be with ourselves and that’s the focus of trauma healing… it’s an opportunity to show up for each in those moments of change and support each other

• This was true of the wetland delineation process, upset, talked about it for weeks

• Also true of this grant, challenged by the idea that most of the grant goes to pay for someone… when you make little or next to nothing, the salary seems very robust

• Actually looking to take on more initiative as a designer, at first I struggled to understand how much control of the process is comfortable (still struggle with this). What choices do people want vs what choices do you want others to make?

• Many of us know the challenge of walking into a franchised grocery store to buy a bottle of ketchup. Too many options…

• Focusing more on people’s strengths and interests and finding ways to give them options around that.

• I’ve become more confident in myself as a researcher

• As I was doing this, I was learning to be a landscape designer

• I was also learning to be a researcher, how to be a good and ethical one

• Learning about homelessness

• Learning about trauma + trauma-informed design

• Struggling at school