my second space in istanbul

Fri Jun 2 02:21:32 PDT 2006

Hello Chris,

I have been reading the thread that ended (so far) with your response to
Raffi who I had the privilege to meet at Goa in ’04.

Like so many of us I am a space-holder through birth by initiation who,
for reasons that don’t matter in this moment, has chosen not to formally
open space for some nine months.  I am planning to return to the work in
August and I have been reflecting in those rare quiet moments what it
really means to me to be a space holder and how, once again, I would
like the people who come, to see and think of the experience I offer.
And I know that it has all of this has been discussed before on this
list and in many other places.

Your words resonated in all of me as is they had formed themselves into
a singing bowl.  I find myself reading them over and over again to
remind myself what I intuitively know.  That being able to fill the role
of spaceholder is indeed a privilege and it is to be entered into with
thoughtfulness and grace.  If I don’t do that then the space that I am
called to keep open will collapse in on itself.  Perhaps it is just
because of that, that spaceholding is such joyful work and why it is so
successful around the world.

Thank you once again for your insightful words.

Aart

Aart Groothuis
dialogue architect and open space facilitator
telling the story

PO Box 3266 | Manuka ACT 2603 | AUSTRALIA
m: 0419 42 68 80
i:  <mailto:aart.groothuis at tellingthestory.net >
aart.groothuis at tellingthestory.net |  <http://www.tellingthestory.net/>
www.tellingthestory.net

. . . working with teams to regain focus and momentum . . . 

-----Original Message-----
From: OSLIST [mailto:OSLIST at LISTSERV.BOISESTATE.EDU] On Behalf Of Chris
Weaver
Sent: Friday, 2 June 2006 13:01
To: OSLIST at LISTSERV.BOISESTATE.EDU
Subject: Re: my second space in istanbul

Dear Raffi,

Hold that yawn, my friend.

I don't know about FIV, and I don't use the word professional.  But from
a village perspective, dependency is a beautiful thing.

I may plant my garden, but I am not a farmer.  And I know someone who
is.  I celebrate my dependence on how she cultivates her knowledge (and
I enjoy it at my table).

I may repair a wall with mud and straw, but I am not a builder.  And I
know someone who is.  I celebrate my dependence on how she cultivates
her knowledge.  And I awaken every morning looking up at her beams in
the pre-dawn light.

I may pray for my son to recover from his illness and I may brew the tea
that helps, but I am not a healer.  I know someone who is.  I celebrate
my dependence on how he cultivates his knowledge.  When my son runs
across the field restored to wholeness, I leave gifts on his doorstep.

I may communicate with the Ancestors and the Guides, but I am not a
shaman.  And I know someone who is.  I celebrate my dependence on how
she cultivates her knowledge.  When the whole village makes a swift
turning to a new path following her understanding of one orphaned
twelve-year-old's dream, I give thanks for her ways which I trust but do
not understand.

I may make a pinch pot, but I am not a potter.  I know someone who is.
I celebrate my dependence on how she cultivates her knowledge.  And I
carry water from the spring house to my kitchen in her pots, and I dip
in the dipper and I drink.

I may tell a story on a winter night, but I am not a storyteller.  I
know someone who is.  I celebrate my dependence on how he cultivates his
knowledge.  I watch how the words enter the children's ears, alight in
their hearts, and rise like sparks from that fire to shine in their
eyes, which now have a glimpse of the whole ancient tree.

I may play a drum, but I am not a drummer.  I know someone who is.  I
celebrate my dependence on how he cultivates his knowledge.  Upon the
callouses of his hands, for two days and nights straight, I make the
journey through the heart of grief to the beach on the other side where
the spring rain is falling softly on the new grass.

And so there are some people too who are called space-holders.  I was
born to be one, if not by birth than by birth-through-initiation.  And
so I pay attention and I cultivate my knowledge.  I enjoy sharing and I
enjoy watching the others stepping into the circle.  And when those
moments come when I am called upon, I do not doubt that it matters or
that I am the right one.  By my own choice each day and each moment, I
am ready.

~Chris

-----Original Message-----
From: OSLIST [mailto:OSLIST at LISTSERV.BOISESTATE.EDU]On Behalf Of Raffi
Aftandelian
Sent: Thursday, June 01, 2006 4:41 PM
To: OSLIST at LISTSERV.BOISESTATE.EDU
Subject: Re: my second space in istanbul

There is one great way to not have to answer questions: leave.

I would submit that professional space-holding is emergent dependency,
ultimately a delayed onset risk behavior for contracting FIV (flatland
immunodeficiency virus).

I am glad that this has been said on the list already, that really
groups do not really need the space-holder either. But most
organizations are not their yet, I imagine.

So for now, space-holding as a facilitation practice has to pass as
something new, cutting-edge. Yawn. Oh well. Somebody has to do the dirty
work.

In synchro-density,
raffi

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