Bizarre Conflict.

As someone who is never comfortable around conflict, being embroiled in the middle of a very bizarre experience has left me this week feeling unsettled and upset. I won't provide details here as it won't solve a thing. I can only write that working in a team environment, as volunteers, there should still be a level of professionalism and willingness for all voices to be heard. Within this particular initiative, there is clearly a "them" and "us". It's been evident for a while that an unhealthiness was brewing and as we tried to work through it, there was a sudden change and people quit! And quit with bitter words that don't make sense nor add up to the actual experience. I find I've had to be the peacemaker in certain situations over the year and I think some of my upset is not even having the opportunity to help two parties find common ground. I guess I could take some heart and work it out in my head that if they couldn't handle some questions about process and how to move forward, then they weren't the kind of people we'd want to move forward on the board. None of this feels good. None of it makes sense. I don't like hidden agendas and there is a piece of me wondering if that's what this is all about. Alterior motives? Creative differences? In the end, I don't think we'l every truly know why this bizzare conflict began. What I do know is that we now have a new individual taking on that area and she has, in a very short time, made leaps and bounds in the progress of the tasks that were being worked on or hadn't yet been touched. In the end, the individuals who are committed and work seamlessly within a team environment are the ones still with us and the ones we need to complete this project. A natural weeding out of the conflicters was the right path ~ it just doesn't feel good. This too shall soon pass. 

~ Chy