Follow the Luggage Tags

The setting: Scientists and aficionados gathering
The place: Dallas Fort Worth airport
    As I was getting situated in my window seat for the flight from LAX to TX, I caught the eyes of the young woman who sat directly in front of me.  She looked as though she enjoyed the great outdoors but I thought little of it.  Once we were leaving the airplane three hours later, I glimpsed what would become the simplest symbol of solidarity: the purple luggage tag.  This prized piece of flexible rubber depicting an anthropomorphized penguin next to the letters USAP (United States Antarctic Program) was not only a great way to know you were in the right place but indicated status as well.  Along with a few familiar faces at the international gate in Dallas, I was confronted with not only other friendly purple luggage tags but all the colors of the rainbow from past seasons.  Red, blue, green, and orange were only a few of the colors that marked the scientists, students, divers, support staff, and journalists that were assembling at E24.  This was both an honor and a humbling experience to quietly become part of a relatively small group of people that have shared this arguably unique experience throughout the years since the continent’s discovery and exploration. 
    As with most extraordinary endeavors and adventures, this one is comprised of people of all ages, backgrounds, and goals, all of which are unified by the underlying curiosity and love of nature around the world.  Weather it is their first or fourteenth time and whether they are studying the spatial variability of particle flux and nutrient sequestration (and hopefully science communication!!), sea ice formation, microbial communities, or penguin diets, everyone bubbling with excitement for the scenery, the science, and the friendships both new and old.