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<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Hi Birgitt,</FONT></DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>that's OK</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>don't worry, be happy,</FONT></DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>thank you very much again for your sharing your
knowledge, your heart and love with us</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>we are learning from you to be patient and
democratic, kind and courageous - you came to Siberia!</FONT></DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>I hope everything is going well for you now and
sometimes to know about what you have - people really need to know how to be
without usual things. sorry for some not pleasant learnings, but you have now
all your world back and you can compare, what are your givens...</FONT></DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>best wishes to you and good luck</FONT></DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>elena</FONT></DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<BLOCKQUOTE
style="BORDER-LEFT: #000000 2px solid; MARGIN-LEFT: 5px; MARGIN-RIGHT: 0px; PADDING-LEFT: 5px; PADDING-RIGHT: 0px">
<DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial">----- Original Message ----- </DIV>
<DIV
style="BACKGROUND: #e4e4e4; FONT: 10pt arial; font-color: black"><B>From:</B>
<A href="mailto:birgitt@MINDSPRING.COM" title=birgitt@MINDSPRING.COM>Birgitt
Williams</A> </DIV>
<DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial"><B>To:</B> <A
href="mailto:OSLIST@LISTSERV.BOISESTATE.EDU"
title=OSLIST@LISTSERV.BOISESTATE.EDU>OSLIST@LISTSERV.BOISESTATE.EDU</A> </DIV>
<DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial"><B>Sent:</B> Monday, June 11, 2001 1:13 PM</DIV>
<DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial"><B>Subject:</B> Novosibirsk reflections
continued</DIV>
<DIV><BR></DIV>
<DIV>
<P><FONT face=Arial size=2><SPAN class=620423520-10062001>Dear friends and
colleagues in Open Space,</SPAN></FONT></P>
<P><FONT face=Arial>My last e-mail to the list regarding the Working With Open
Space Technology training in Novosibirsk was an e-mail regarding my
experiences during the training and my admiration for the people who attended,
their leadership and their vision. <SPAN class=620423520-10062001>Thank
you for your notes regarding this.</SPAN></FONT></P>
<P><FONT face=Arial>Today I choose to write more about the conditions within
which these people are planning to do this work. From my perspective. Please
keep in mind that I only spent five days in Russia. </FONT></P>
<P><FONT face=Arial>Today, I am in Holland, leading another Working With Open
Space Technology session, this time with Koos de Heer. Koos met me at the
airport June 7th, a welcome face. I was in deep gratitude to him for taking
over the care of my cases (suitcase, computer case, and book bag) and whisking
me away in his car along well ordered streets to a quiet apartment, green
salad for lunch, a chance to use his computer. I was exhausted and needed some
tender care. The trip from my place of stay in Novosibirsk was 11 hours. Elena
with her husband, had picked me up at 4:45am. Some of my exhaustion came from
the trip itself, which included carrying my bags onto and off of buses, up
stairs and down stairs, and always trying to hurry so I wouldn’t miss my
connections. There are no ramps etc. to wheel suitcases. I thought a lot about
handicapped people. There are no visible signs of assistance for them.
</FONT></P>
<P><FONT face=Arial>I look down at the bruises on my legs, arms, hips. From
being bumped by people and suitcases. I would have had many more bruises, if
it were not for Elena. I had a great deal of difficulty coping with the mob
scenes of people, particularly during the trip there and the one back. Elena
accompanied me back as far as Moscow so that she could get me transferred from
one airport to the other one. She became aware that I did not know how to
navigate the mobs of people and that I kept getting pushed back, by elbows and
by suitcases. Hence the bruises. Elena explained to me that people did not
line up, did not queue but knew that the art of getting what they
needed/wanted was to push others aside, to use their elbows to get to the
front of the line. She explained that for a long time, people were used to not
having enough, so to be sure to get their share the pushing became required
behavior. She said the same applied to getting onto a bus or a plane. Even
with a boarding pass in hand, she said that people had too much experience of
being turned away, not being able to get on their flight because someone had
used money to get a spot on the plane without a ticket. Losing a spot on the
plane might require days to get another. So, how our trip went was that Elena
would negotiate our next steps for us, and she would wedge herself into a spot
and then make space for me to get right in front of her. Like a body guard. I
was so thankful to her. She knew the art of navigating and knew it well. I was
not so lucky on my journey to Novosibirsk and had a number of very difficult
moments.</FONT></P>
<P><FONT face=Arial>As Elena’s friend, Natalia, said, the transformation that
is needed in Russia is for people to do a total shift in perspective to
believing in abundance rather than in scarcity. She said that until this shift
took place with a critical mass of the people, that the entrenched scarcity
behaviors would not likely shift. </FONT></P>
<P><FONT face=Arial>The scarcity mentality affects organizations, communities.
People compete rather than cooperate. I used the word "collaboration". Elena
explained that the word was not understood. "Collaboration" did not mean
something positive but rather something negative like collaborating with the
enemy.</FONT></P>
<P><FONT face=Arial>There are also very strong attitudes, beliefs, and
behaviors to do with "customers". I think someone like Elena knows how to get
through all of this too, to get something to happen. However, here is my
experience. In the hotel, as I walked in, the lobby is dark, unappealing and
two men sit at a desk in front of me. I struggle with my cases. They are not
there to help, or even to take registrations. They are there to ensure
security, whatever that means. To the left is the reception area where two
women sit behind glass, with windows. They clearly control the situation. And
deal with the registration at a slow pace, also needing to keep my passport to
get me registered. Upstairs, on my floor, was another desk with an attendant.
She was there to be in control of keys. And who knows what else. I do know
that everytime I opened my door , if the attendant was not at her desk, she
poked her head around the corner, not to see if I wanted anything but to see
what I was doing. Elena explained that maybe I misunderstood some things. And
she explained that many of the people I was witnessing were barely making a
living, and they did not see a way out of their situation. She said it was all
part of the Russian way of life.</FONT></P>
<P><FONT face=Arial>Most people in Novosibirsk live in large housing
complexes, built in the 50’s by the government when they were establishing the
town for both military and sciences. The housing was provided. Private
residences are not allowed. It is obvious that there has been little money for
upkeep. I can only imagine what it is like to live in these congested
conditions now, despite abundant forest and land around, with a rule against
ownership of personal land. Sometimes a decision is made about no water, or no
hot water, or heat in that cold winter. The summer is hot and there is very
little evidence of air conditioning. No screens for the windows and many
mosquitos get in. The mosquitos are carriers of encephalitis. At least, that
is what some of the people told me. Elena was telling me that last winter,
some people had to create fires outside and huddle around them, just to get
warm during a period when there was no heat. There is not money to pay the
fuel.</FONT></P>
<P><FONT face=Arial>There is a lot of disillusionment amongst people. The
government had been supporting their work. They are no longer supported except
for subsistence wage of $70 per month. They continue to work, not knowing the
value of their work, what it will do. I picked up that this is some of what is
causing an attitude that I felt, of needing to exert a sense of control in
other ways.</FONT></P>
<P><FONT face=Arial>Disillusionment, combined with generations of living with
scarcity is not a good mix.</FONT></P>
<P><FONT face=Arial>There is a lot more to Novosibirsk that is positive. I
know that Elena loves her city and is proud of it. </FONT></P>
<P><FONT face=Arial>I may be wrong in aspects of what is so and not so in
Novosibirsk. The above are my perceptions. Raffi, who has joined this list,
can give incredible insights. Welcome Raffi! Raffi is an amazing man who is
working to be of influence for positive development of people. And as he says
in his e-mail, two days by train to get from Moscow to Novosobirsk for the
training, and that isn’t an easy trip.</FONT></P>
<P><FONT face=Arial>I write this background, to share with you as best as I
can, what Elena with her colleagues and friends are working with. They provide
leadership, they are networked with others. They are collaborating and
cooperating with each other. They have a common vision of improved development
of people for a better community. A solution focused community.</FONT></P>
<P><FONT face=Arial>But as Natasha says, the critical required transformation
that will lead to all of the other transformations is the one in attitude from
a scarcity mentality to an fear to one of love. </FONT></P>
<P><FONT face=Arial>This is the backdrop that Elena and her friends so
courageously work in, to bring about hopeabundance mentality. And a shift from
pervasive d for change. I hope I have been able to convey it
fairly.</FONT></P>
<P><FONT face=Arial>Respectfully submitted,</FONT></P>
<P><FONT face=Arial>Birgitt Williams</FONT></P>
<P><FONT face=Arial>June 10, 2001</FONT></P>
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