Reflections on OSonOS

[Lisa Heft]

Hello, dear colleagues -

While I was on the virtual team for OSonOS in Goa, I was unable to
attend (waaaanh!) - so I cannot comment based on that experience...but I
have attended the OSonOSs in 2000, 2001, 2002 and 2003.

I come to OSonOSs for face-to-face interaction with the tribe (you) whom
I have come to know and enjoy learning with online.  If I want to, I
also try to think of something I would really like to try out with my
colleagues in-person - as a way to stretch my thinking about OS and
similar practices.

In 2000, I held a session named nothing - I just held up a blank piece
of paper.  Whoever came, came, and we all sat outside for about 1/2 hour
and enjoyed silence in a group.  In 2001 I co-convened several sessions
on how to help others attend OSonOSs (hence Access Queen was born).  In
2002 I tried out something with whomever wanted to join me in the
experiment - how you might help people with challenges (such as
life-challenging illness) draw a map of their life and move through it
to experience various stages and to move into the present (and the
future).  In 2003 I held a session where we taught and learned without
words.  I also held a session where we imagined and told the stories of
what it would be like to pack certain things in our real or imaginary
suitcase to travel through some upcoming transition.

I could not have held any of these sessions or learned about any of
these things online.  I needed people of an Open Space mentality (you
guys) in-person to help me stretch and wonder.  I thank all of you who
attended those sessions, because you enriched my learning and
understanding greatly.

I am a much better holder of space than I am a participant - maybe that
is why I find I do sessions with less words.  I get a little overwhelmed
in such a talky environment and I often have to go away to take care of
myself.  So I do.

At the Vancouver and the Melbourne OSonOS a person connected to the
indigenous people of the land welcomed us. This was very moving.  In a
few other OS events there have been (as part of the design) meditation,
breathing, standing, walking, naming and
calling-ancestors-into-the-circle sorts of things and I had wished that
was an optional activity - it was not for me and I felt culturally
uncomfortable as it was spiritual but not my spirituality.  Which was
different than someone of the land (say, a spiritual leader of the
indigenous people of the region) welcoming me briefly to the land.

As others have mentioned, I feel it is very hard to leave the opening or
closing circles.  Sure, the law is the law and it is up to me, but from
my experience the full-group circles are meant for group witnessing and
that feels different than discussions and conversations and sharing in
smaller, simultaneous and constantly changing little discussion circles.

I find that when an event is designed with layers of activities before
the 'pure' opening of space (here is our theme, our principles,
invitation to post sessions) I just find it frustrating - I want to get
to the Open Space and I feel a bit stuck sitting there through the other
stuff.

I have learned that when working with a client you want to be sure to
not have them do speeches or presentations before the Open Space if at
all possible - it puts people in a sedentary, passive mode rather than
releasing them into an active mode.  Why would we do it differently for
an OSonOS?

I also have trouble sitting in a really long closing circle without a
time limit.  I am a person who is very peaceful sitting, listening,
witnessing.  But after a day or days of Open Space, my body is just not
ready to fit into a shape of sedentary receiving.  And don't we tell
clients that it is important not to put a speaker or sedentary activity
after Open Space, because the participants will feel all edgy trying to
fit back into that sitting way?  It's interesting that at our OSonOSs we
have really really long closing circles.  I love them, and every single
contribution is a jewel.  But I find it physically demanding.

As for theme - for an OSonOS I like a nice theme but I also think we
carry within us (we travelers across the world to OSonOSs) the urgency
or the theme or the need or the friction or the passion we need - it is
up to us to introduce topics, to engage, to disengage, to walk away, to
walk back into.  Such is Open Space.

I look forward to coming to Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada for the 2005
OSonOS, August 3-6.  Maybe I'll bring a burning issue.  Maybe I'll have
to go for walks a lot and not come to all the sessions.  Maybe like in
Swenmark (2003) people will hold salsa and capoeira and silence
sessions.  And I know I shall learn so very much from you all...

Cheers from sunny Berkeley, California, USA,

Lisa
________________________________

L i s a   H e f t
Consultant, Facilitator, Educator
O p e n i n g  S p a c e
2325 Oregon
Berkeley, California
94705-1106   USA
+01 510 548-8449
lisaheft at openingspace.net
www.openingspace.net

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