butterflies and bumblebees

Rich Foss richfoss at plowcreek.org
Wed Dec 10 08:47:42 PST 2003


  Marei

  Thanks so much for filling me in on butterflies and bees. The concept of pollinating bees makes sense and I am utterly fascinated by your description of butterflies. I have noted the phenonema in groups--someone is present but not entering in. I've also noted many attempts over the years on the part of groups to activate such folks and I've never felt comfortable with the pressure to confrom. Now I have a vibrant word to honor such folks--butterflies.

  Rich Foss
  Evergreen Leaders, 19235 Plow Creek
  Tiskilwa, IL 61368, Voice & Fax: 815-646-6600
  richfoss at plowcreek.org
    ----- Original Message ----- 
    From: Marei Kiele 
    To: OSLIST at LISTSERV.BOISESTATE.EDU 
    Sent: Tuesday, December 09, 2003 7:15 PM
    Subject: butterflies and bumblebees




    "Rich Foss" <richfoss at plowcreek.org> schrieb:
    Last Saturday I did my first OS faciltiation... "That's fine," I said, "We're going to use the law of two feet so you can leave any time you want." (Instead of describing OS in the preparatory session we pastoral elders had simply said that we were not going to use our traditonal format of all sitting in a circle listening to one person at a time talk).

    Dear Rich,

    congratulations on your first os from one beginner to the other. Any other first timer's out there??? And I very much liked the tone of your answer to the man's question very much - feels totally accepting. Thank you for your story :-)


    I have a question. I've seen references on the list to butterflies and bees but haven't been able to dicipher the meaning.

    As no one of the elder's has answered your question yet I dare explaining the butterfly and the bumblebee. They are methaphors for what appears, when people follow the law of the two feet: Some may act as bumblebees do in nature, fly from flower to flower (or group to group), never taking all the nectar (never staying long) and people may think: what a mess they are making, how chaotic - but like bumblebees in nature just incidentally they take the pollen with them, they crosspollinate, they take ideas, thoughts, feelings, atmosphere from one group to another and connect and enrich the whole system.
    Butterflies are those people who don't join a group at all, who stay at the snackbar or outside or go for a walk - who seem to do nothing "useful" in a normal way - exept: they are beautiful.
    (By the way: At first I found it difficult to say beautiful because I could not see the beauty in them, myself. Now I do: How beautiful when somebody is able to give him/herself the freedom not to join in!)
    They seem to be doing nothing important or useful for anybody or for the group but they do: They help opening the space - and, as Michael M says, in systemic thinking they are places of inactivity - meaning that nothing is planned or expected - so everything is possible to happen. 

    Just think that the best preparation to be surprised may be being a butterfly myself?!
    I'll try that out in "normal" life!!

    Marei


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