The Golden Bough

The Golden Bough

The Bough that breaks assumptions

Andy Moore - 18042436

How can a new mentorship platform be developed and implemented that will encourage innovative learning techniques with added recognition and incentive for mentors?

Since its inception this project has encountered numerous peripeteias, culminating in a less pragmatic approach to my chosen subject area as a whole. I feel the Golden Bough was a catalyst for releasing a lot of anguish and fear in how I felt others perceived my performance and what longevity and impact my project may have.

I have begun to relinquish control and desire for the ‘perfect project’ to rather strive for a deliberately unsettling finish. These past few months I have struggled with the paradox of achieving professional fulfilment yet maintaining creative integrity. I am learning slowly to let go. My hypothesis thus far has indicated that it’s better to let my project breathe as this will allow more scope for direction and experimentation. I’ve got to accept the ever-changing nature of my work and it’s something I’m very much beginning to enjoy.

I wouldn’t feel much excitement for my project if I thought that I had acquired all the sufficient skills or indeed had all the answers to hand. Perhaps this view has come with age and maturity and where I am in my life. With contentment comes clarity. I have implemented a new working model to allow me to dictate my output, rather than to suffer often interrupted hours. I have taken responsibility for meeting with peers which has been invaluable to me and have negotiated with myself a much firmer and rigid schedule of learning. This has been a key turning point for me and given me the impetus in reaching conclusions, however surprising they may be. My methodology is to rather than shut all the windows, fling them open and to let all the noise and light in. Rebelling and relishing in my newly naturalistic cognitive approach.

This intervention has allowed me to discover that there are limitations within my project. Part of my research question is about reconnecting – building bridges and repairs. As the seeker for these answers I had totally underestimated and undervalued the fact that people may not wish to participate in my grander scheme of things. I had perceived my project to be a lasting legacy that would benefit all those involved; this may not be the case. My Golden Bough ‘amends letter’ demonstrated this fully. The recipient has given me an underwhelming response and I have turned the question onto myself. Who would I not wish to hear from? At what point do we go past in being unable to make amends? I will have to accept that some doors will remain forever locked. I will need to uncover other points of entry.

The measurable effects of my research and intervention has led me to conduct and construct a more open framework. Vulnerability may be an option. If I can relate my story in a better way, people may volunteer without reluctance to change. The Golden bough has enabled me to understand the importance of reconnecting for the well-being of others but to also reconnect with my inner self. I had never considered before that this project would have an effect on me. I was seeking to heal and to make this world a better place in whatever way I could, no matter how small the change. The purpose of my Golden Bough was to alleviate if I could any pain or suffering with whom I felt I had left broken or damaged. I have since discovered that I was not only making amends with the recipient of the letter but I was also making amends with myself. I cannot empathise enough how important this project has been for me. Not only in the turning point for my research question but for what lies ahead in how I live my life.