Early this April, I received word that my internship would soon conclude.  There was simply not any available funding to continue my position.  Although I was disappointed to leave my internship prematurely, I can certainly look back on the experience and say that I was blessed with a myriad of opportunities during my time as an intern.

One of the most valuable, but unexpected gifts I received through my internship was the practice of quiet.  While at work, I usually found myself quietly working on my own to accomplish the tasks of herbarium operation.  These hours I spent “with myself” were so valuable in helping me practice being content with my own company through the course of a day.  After beginning my new job helping manage a retail greenhouse (where I interact with many customers and co-workers throughout the day) I realized just how valuable that quiet time had been.  Even though I thoroughly enjoy working with people, I was surprised when I realized how much I valued that stable solitude.

I was also given the opportunity to get to know a wide range of positively wonderful people!  My co-workers were marvelous, and also incredibly knowledgeable and good-natured.  My internship has also certainly been an excellent opportunity for networking within the Bureau of Land Management, and has allowed me to work with a variety of people in my field.

During the course of my internship, I had the chance to participate in a variety of projects.  Most of these projects involved managing lichen specimen data using our access database.  Since these data management projects involved so much data and and required quite a bit of time, I did not have the chance to see them to their completion before I left.  However, I did get to see significant progression over time.  I also mounted many herbarium vouchers, and made a sizable dent in the specimens that had been waiting for years to be mounted. One project I was able to see to completion was the organization and labeling of our small herbarium library, which now contains a variety of botany related literature.

Many thanks to everyone for the chance to work with the CLM internship program!  With my internship now complete, I am excited about the possibilities of my new job, and I can’t wait to see where things lead!

Without a doubt, this has been a time of transition with plenty to learn as change galloped past and scooped me up to come along for the ride!  Some aspects of transition during my internship have been publicly obvious, while others have been much more quiet and personal.

Perhaps the most immediately obvious change that came with my CLM internship was that of my work environment – an abrupt shift from the fast-paced interpersonal environment of customer service to the intensely detail-oriented and independent work I found in my internship.  This winter and spring I have had the pleasure of working with a number of fine folk from the Idaho BLM State Office and the Snake River Plains Herbarium at Boise State University.

The view from my window at the Snake River Plains Herbarium located on the Boise State University campus.

Whether at the State Office or the herbarium, I think it is safe to say that my position could be best defined by the simple phrase “data management.”  My main responsibilities revolved around preparing vouchers for the Snake River Plains Herbarium and managing information about these specimens using an Access database and collection notebook documentation.  Whether my day involved data entry, creating herbarium voucher labels, or mounting vascular plant specimens and feeling like a kid again with my hands covered in glue – one way or another I was the caretaker of information.  If accuracy was the fruit of my labor, then consistency was my desired code of operation, and “Focus!” my mantra.

At the herbarium we store our lichen specimens in envelopes which are then filed into boxes and cabinets. This specimen was collected in 1898.  Seeing how old some of our specimens are reminds me of the impact that my accuracy has not only the work I do now, but also on the work others may complete far in the future.

Another change that has taken place during the course of my internship has been a shift toward working with lichens rather than vascular plants.  This has been a great opportunity to learn all kinds of new things about a type of organism that I have hardly worked with in the past!

This is a lichen specimen I collected while snowshoeing. After keying it out at the herbarium I determined that it was a lichen common to the area called Hypogymnia imshaugii.

Spending hours of time working quietly alone has also given me the unique opportunity to learn how to be more at rest with myself – to be at ease in long silence, to focus, and to control the wanderings of my mind which inevitably wants to bound from one thought to the next.

As I wait to hear news on whether or not I have funding for the remainder of my internship, I do not know what the next week will bring.  Even as I am galloping across the landscape, I still can’t quite make out where the road heads as it leaps past the horizon – And that is ok.  If I pretended to know exactly where this adventure is heading then I suspect I would be ignoring many of the opportunities I will encounter along The Way!   As for me, wherever this adventure leads, I plan on riding forward with all the gumption I’ve got!