What are the unstated assumptions and aims of OS?

Julie Smith jsmith at mosquitonet.com
Sun Oct 13 10:23:32 PDT 2002


My thinking about how much time is needed for ost is to just say yes.
All the time.  To all requests.  If there's room for discussion about
details, then have them, but at the end of the day, say yes.

We've had many short OST's, as that's what has been possible in so many
circumstances.  Last week a colleague received a request from a student
for a meeting for all students in the Peaceable Schools program to talk
about what they learned during the first quarter.  When she sent an
e-mail out to her school to initiate a conversation about the request
she suggested OST and said we'd need at least two hours.  When she asked
me later what I thought about that, it took me a second to let that sift
through me, as my understanding is lagging behind my experience.... and
then I remembered that just the previous night we had successfully held
an OST with adults and youth in that much time.

Another of my experiences last week was a 1 1/2 day peer mediation
training at a middle school.  The first day was a fun, engaged day in a
somewhat traditional format, teaching students the fundamentals of peer
mediation.  The second 1/2 day was pure open space.  The theme was
Building A Better Tomorrow.  It was amazing.  Students who had hardly
spoken the first day became dynamic and passionate leaders around issues
like discrimination, trust, relationships, and laughter.  Their
strength, intelligence and wisdom came shining through in incredible
ways.  By the time all was said and done, we had perhaps a bit more than
2 hours for the OST.  The closing circle was filled with appreciation
for the unexpected wisdom and passion they had found in each other.

My sense of the timing for a two hour ost is 45 minutes to settle in,
explain the process, and post topics, followed by two 1/2 hour sessions,
ending with a 15 minute closing circle.  Some participants will remain
in one session for the entire time, giving them an hour to discuss a
single topic, and others will move around.

I think the principles apply all the time.  When it starts, when it's
over, the people who come, what happens..... all of that is imbedded in
everything.  We don't need to resist what's happening in the planning
stage or the implementation stage or the debriefing stage.  In saying
yes we open space for the loveliness to unfold.

Julie

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