Breathe in, Breathe out

Sometimes, I really wonder how important it is to give people the benefit of a doubt. In a group of 13, you'd think we'd have that constantly. Surprisingly, its been pretty good so far. But tonight at our weekly meeting things fell apart.
Somewhere between Rachel getting frustrated at the usual problem of no one willing to stop talking without being asked, and girls getting uptight about the change in length of our upcoming midsemester retreat, tensions rose, voices were raised, and it was probably the worst moment thus far for our group. I voiced how tense the room felt and with several agreements, yet no one taking blame for childish behavior, we said a prayer which seemed to either help bring the Spirit back into our meeting that started out great, or make everyone awkward and embarassed for our behavior as a group. I think a number of people were hurt and others were misunderstood trying to be blunt and get their point across. It was misinterpreted as angry and defiant I think. Perhaps we all needed to take a minute, calm down and try to approach the situation in a calm adult-like manner. I think now, everyone still feels differently about who's right and wrong in this situation. But it definitely felt like a family tonight with everyone having such different opinions and trying to make everyone happy to a reasonable extent.

Apparently we're all going to Brasov now for midsemester retreat. I was looking forward to Constanta but suddenly our group of 5 disappated to 2 and since we can't travel that small, Rachel and I got out-voted. Some girls want to travel to both, but since I still have football tickets to buy and a plane ticket for CA sometime in October, the excess price is not feasable. My dreams of swimming in the Black Sea and relaxing on a beach are gone. Not to meantion the awesome Mosaic Museum, Roman Ruins and cool lighthouse. I suppose Brasov will be cool but I kind of wanted to get out of the city for a while. There's nothing more freeing and relaxing than the wind across your face as you squish your feet deeper into the wet sand. Brasov seems to have similar things as Constanta so why doesn't anyone want to come to the Black Sea...that seemed to be where everyone wanted to go to begin with. But wait Brittany, if it's the same, why don't you just come to Brasov? Argh. Sure there's the Hollywood-like Brasov sign we'll probably hike to and....more art museums. But I really had laying on the beach for an afternoon or so working on my oh so needed tan rather than relaxing in a hostel. I got really worn out at Bucharest with all the endless walking to and from sights, and then more walking around museums and such. Let's hope we can find a happy medium....