My friend Carmen Pirie writes from Halifax about an Open Space event he facilitated in Newfoundland last week. To harvest proceedings, they used ning and a short video clip from each host.
I like what I see here.
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Raffi Aftendelian has released the final version of Living Peace: the open space of our lives. It features contributions from all over the world, including a piece from my life and business partner Caitlin Frost about parenting in Open Space.
Another free book from the Open Space community. Thanks Raffi and everyne who contributed!
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Raffi Aftendelian unearthed a beautiful gem today. Writing on the OSLIST, he quoted something Harrison Owen had written 40 years ago when he was unknowingly being inspired to create Open Space Technology. As a text to a photo essay on life in a Liberian village, Harrison wrote:
A very special part
of any village celebration
is the appearance of the various “devils.”
The word devil is very misleading,
and was undoubtedly
the unwanted gift
of an early missionary
The devils are not evil,
but rather represent
a respected (albeit feared)
part of the village.
Nothing of importance happens
unless they appear and dance.
In their appearance,
all aspects of the village
are brought together-dance,
music, government, and religion.
When the “Devil” dances, life goes on.***
In the village,
all things go in a circle,
and everything fits.
To speak of the drums
is to speak of the dance,
is to speak of the Devils…Weaving and Forging
Fire and Steel- the Bush
Life, Death and Life again.
Ain’t that something? Another little tidbit to add to the nascent beginning of Open Space.
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Yesterday Ashley Cooper posted a question on the OSLIST about the enigmatic principle of “whatever happens is only thing that could have:
Feeling those gathered in San Francisco, swimming in the hearty open space soup, I find a myself pondering a topic I would host if I were there… a topic I’d love to have a conversation around.
I’m curious about the wording of the principle, “what ever happens is the only thing that could have”. I know John Engle brought this question up in the past http://www.openspaceworld.org/news/2007/05/11/whatever-happens/ and I’m still curious about it.
I find that people sometimes use it as a block to reflection, a reason to not look back and learn from what didn’t happen because “whatever happens is the only thing that could have.” Yes, and…
I love the principle for the acceptance that it invites. And I struggle with it because there is a sense of finality that it also invites (if you want to let yourself go there). We did what we did and that’s, that. Which is true… And…
I appreciate how in Haiti they are playing with What Happens is what happens – learn and move forward. I like the learn and keep moving part.
Are there other ways that people phrase this principle? How do you invite the spirit of acceptance and invitations to be with what is alive and happening in the moment, while also inviting reflection and learning from what has and has not emerged?
If anyone at WOSonOS is reading this and you find this conversation springing up in your face to face time, please do share your harvest with us. I’m contemplating posting a skype session tomorrow morning on this topic… and I’ve not yet been able to commit myself to being inside at the computer tomorrow morning!!
I put the question to a few folks here and recorded about a half hour of their answers. Wisdom follows from Larry Peterson, Michael Cook, Viv McWaters, Peggy Holman, Susan Kerr, Michael Pannwitz, David Barnes, Jeff Aitken, Lisa Heft, Aine Corrigan-Frost, Alan Stewart, Phelim McDermott, Elwin Guild, John Engle and Brian Bainbridge, You can listen to the interviews here:
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I mentioned some of the blogs that are here in San Franciso…here are a few more:
- Stephan List and also this Toolblog
- Winkipod
- Tales of a toy
- Diana Larsen
- Mythic Cartography