[The fox appeared and encountered the little prince]
"Are you looking for chickens?"

"No," said the little prince.
"I am looking for friends.
What does that mean---tame?"

"It is an act too often neglected,"
said the fox.
"It means to establish ties."

"To establish ties?"

"Just that," said the fox.
"to me, you are still nothing more than a little boy who is just like a hundred thousand other little boys.
And I have no need of you.
And you, on your part, have no need of me.
To you I am nothing more than a fox like a hundred thousand other foxes.
But if you tame me, then we shall need each other.
To me, you will be unique in all the world.
To you, I shall be unique in all the world. . ."

"I am beginning to understand,"
said the little prince.

"There is a flower ... I think she has tamed me ..."

"It is possible," said the fox.

"On earth one sees all sorts of things."

"Oh but this is not on the earth!"
said the little prince.

The fox seemed perplexed, and very curious.
"On another planet?"

"Yes"

(Antoine De Saint Exupery, 1943)

We've had quite a few visitors on this trip, some people we knew for years, others we are just meeting. And maybe one or two we weren't too sure about.

Each day, one of us might say, "You know, that Brendan, he's really a nice guy." And we'd tell stories about how Brendan helped fix the generator, and how mannerly he behaved, plus maybe why we were surprised. "Well, I thought he was a bit formal at Ames." And someone would reply how personable Brendan really was, with the usual reply, :"Well, I hadn't gotten the chance to know him before."

Back home our encounters are rather limited and orchestrated by our work: Meetings in groups, perhaps walking to the cafeteria together, maybe (a daring jump) having dinner, and for the very few, doing something "outside of work," like an invitation to Thanksgiving or a soirée.

But here, we have such a wealth of ways to be together:

You get the wrench, I'll check the GreenHab, then we'll meet back here and restart the generator.

"May I come up?" Sure, just remember to take off your shoes.

Kevin, do you want to drive out with Bryan and check the repeater?

Liam, did you want to go for a walk? I could show you the endoliths.

Rick, can you help us with the oil? Jim says aside, "I can." Later you ask, where did you learn so much about electrical systems? He built a few houses. Hmm.

On and on it goes, hundreds of times a day. Help me with this, want to go do this? Would you like some of this hot water? Can somebody check out ScienceOrganizer? Bill, thanks for cooking again.

Thousands of offers and just as many joins, sitting together, walking, eating, repairing, investigating. Invitations, explanations. A depth and intensity of working together that few know in today's world.

Teamwork is a word we toss around so much at NASA, and it's part of every project. But when the project becomes a mission or a field test, that is when collaborating becomes thoughtful give and take.

Listening now, I hear so many gifts: "Ray, here is Dan's cell phone number. Can you give him a call?" (said this very moment). "Thanks, Ed, I see that," says Rob. "So I won't stop GPS tracking until they are at waypoint 30, cause otherwise the code bombs," Ron says to Maarten. "Okay." And Rick overlays, "So we have to start another coordination... so let me email you the exact number of the GPS base.. they need it for their mapping..."

Last week one of our colleagues whom we had met maybe a dozen times in meetings joined the crew. He cooked twice, we went for some hikes. One day he and I went exploring for endoliths, a quiet time investigating and photographing together we're not likely to forget. Going so far beyond the polite greetings that start most any conversation (how are things going for you?), it was a week of much more meaningful "taming." No longer just researchers passing at Ames, we've learned to rely on and help each other. In these weeks, we learned to relate and formed some habits. We are all now characters, with different laughs and strengths. And that's why our team endures. As sociologists explain— collaborative problem solving is only possible for those who already have a practice, a way of organizing themselves. Watch us and you'll see we spend nearly no time talking about who is responsible for what. It's more a matter of, what do I need to know about your system to get my job done? And, when can we sit down and work out the details?

Jeff's short three hour visit today was similar. We've known each other for 20 years. But his long drive from Salt Lake City to say hello, and our greeting him in our home, the upper deck, strengthened our relation in unspeakable ways. The place, the light, the surrounding activity, all made for something fresh, inspiring, and smiling. Maarten said, "I wonder why he drove so far for such a short visit?" "To establish ties," said the fox.

Alonso visited this week with two students and a colleague from Ames. They sat through our meetings (so much closer than before); we agreed about new tools, and how his team might help.

The same could be said for visits from Jim, Srikanth, Dave, and the Salt Lake Tribune reporter. Nobody goes away unchanged.

It could be said that the ongoing purpose of MDRS, and why 40 crews have chosen to stay here, is for establishing professional ties and forming friendships. 200 scientists and engineers from many countries, have lived and worked here together, learning about different perspectives, fitting together thoughts and capabilities that the entire world can draw upon in space exploration efforts for years to come.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

"If you want a friend, tame me. . ."

"What must I do, to tame you? asked the little prince.

"You must be very patient," replied the fox.
First you will sit down at a little distance from me - like that-in the grass.
I shall look at you out of the corner of my eye, and you will say nothing.
Words are the source of misunderstandings.
But you will sit a little closer to me, every day..."