Whatever happens....

Harrison Owen hhowen at verizon.net
Thu Jul 24 12:40:05 PDT 2008


Ashley - Unfortunately I am not at OSONOS (wish I were) and I like what you
wrote. Your thoughts and musings are all to the point, but I am not sure
that rephrasing the principle will get you where you want to go. I grant you
that the words could have been more eloquent, to say nothing of grammatical,
but that is just sort of how they happened. You know - "Whatever happened. .
." But the real point, so far as I am concerned, is that this principle (as
indeed all of them) is descriptive, not prescriptive.  There is no "should"
present or implied - just an observation of present reality. At least that
is the way it seemed at the time. Where one goes from there is an open
question, and a rich one. Hopes and expectations are great, and searching
for alternative possibilities is obviously a key element of our adaptive
behavior which lies at the root of our continuing evolution as a person and
as a people. But unless all that starts from a clear point of grounding in
the present moment, it seems to me that we can quickly lose our way. It is
also true that were we to become so infatuated with what "might" take place;
we may well miss the opportune richness of the moment. So for me it is all
about a starting place, an invitation to be present. It is also an
invitation to go deeper into this present moment. For me that has always
been the jump off place for truly amazing journeys. 

 

Harrison

 

Harrison Owen

7808 River Falls Drive

Potomac, Maryland   20854

Phone 301-365-2093

Skype hhowen

Open Space Training  <http://www.openspaceworld.com/> www.openspaceworld.com


Open Space Institute  <http://www.openspaceworld.org/>
www.openspaceworld.org

Personal website  <http://www.ho-image.com/> www.ho-image.com 

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-----Original Message-----
From: OSLIST [mailto:OSLIST at LISTSERV.BOISESTATE.EDU] On Behalf Of ashley
cooper
Sent: Thursday, July 24, 2008 12:29 PM
To: OSLIST at LISTSERV.BOISESTATE.EDU
Subject: Whatever happens....

 

Hello friends around the world,

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!!

Alive and grateful,
Ashley

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