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<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Bobbi,</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>What a great question! How about coming to
Spirited Work as a starting point? It will give you a chance to see what
it looks like in action and pursue the question with people who are living in
it. Our next session is coming up -- Jan. 23-27.</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>In addition, I've copied Anne Stadler, who wrote
the story I sent. She's done a great deal of reflection on this subject
and I suspect has something already written on the subject. </FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Peggy</FONT></DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial">----- Original Message -----
<DIV style="BACKGROUND: #e4e4e4; font-color: black"><B>From:</B> <A
title=bobbi@concinnity.net href="mailto:bobbi@concinnity.net">Bobbi Bilnoski</A>
</DIV>
<DIV><B>To:</B> <A title=OSLIST@LISTSERV.BOISESTATE.EDU
href="mailto:OSLIST@LISTSERV.BOISESTATE.EDU">OSLIST@LISTSERV.BOISESTATE.EDU</A>
</DIV>
<DIV><B>Sent:</B> Friday, January 10, 2003 12:23 PM</DIV>
<DIV><B>Subject:</B> Re: Learning at Spirited Work about spirit, money and our
material needs</DIV></DIV>
<DIV><BR></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face="Trebuchet MS"></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=459042320-10012003><FONT face="Trebuchet MS">Where can I find
good instructions on forming an OST learning community?</FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<P class=MsoPlainText align=left><B style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal"><I
style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal"><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; FONT-FAMILY: Papyrus; mso-no-proof: yes">Bobbi
Bilnoski<o:p></o:p></SPAN></I></B></P>
<P class=MsoPlainText align=left><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 8pt; COLOR: teal; FONT-FAMILY: 'Trebuchet MS'; mso-no-proof: yes">Concinnity
Network<BR></SPAN><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 8pt; COLOR: teal; FONT-FAMILY: 'Trebuchet MS'; mso-no-proof: yes">214-293-8696
cell<BR></SPAN><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 8pt; COLOR: teal; FONT-FAMILY: 'Trebuchet MS'; mso-no-proof: yes"><A
href="mailto:bobbi@concinnity.net">bobbi@concinnity.net</A>
<o:p></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P class=MsoNormal align=left><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 8pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Trebuchet MS'"><o:p> </o:p></SPAN></P>
<BLOCKQUOTE dir=ltr style="MARGIN-RIGHT: 0px">
<DIV></DIV>
<DIV class=OutlookMessageHeader lang=en-us dir=ltr align=left><FONT
face=Tahoma size=2>-----Original Message-----<BR><B>From:</B> OSLIST
[mailto:OSLIST@LISTSERV.BOISESTATE.EDU] <B>On Behalf Of </B>Peggy
Holman<BR><B>Sent:</B> Friday, January 10, 2003 1:37 PM<BR><B>To:</B> <A
href="mailto:OSLIST@LISTSERV.BOISESTATE.EDU">OSLIST@LISTSERV.BOISESTATE.EDU</A><BR><B>Subject:</B>
Learning at Spirited Work about spirit, money and our material
needs<BR><BR></FONT></DIV>
<DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>From time to time, I've mentioned Spirited
Work. It is an Open Space learning community, about to enter its fifth
year of meeting four times a year in OS using Angeles Arrien's archetypes as a
learning lens. (More info is at <A
href="http://www.spiritedwork.org">www.spiritedwork.org</A>.) Anne
Stadler just wrote a delicious piece on an amazing story about our
relationship to money. In the past year, we've moved from a debt of
$5,000 to available funds of $7,000 (a $12,000 swing) through following a
feeling of abundance and following what has heart and meaning. To me, it
has been a fabulous example of learning to collecitvely live in open
space.</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Thought you might enjoy her story.</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Peggy</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>P.S. If you're interested in buying a copy
of Spirited Food, the cookbook Anne mentions in the story, let me
know.</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV>CREATING KNOWLEDGE AT SPIRITED WORK<BR><BR>OUR STORY ABOUT SPIRIT, MONEY
AND OUR MATERIAL NEEDS<BR><BR>By, Anne
Stadler<BR><BR> The four Founding SW Convenors
started with a commitment to "Sharing Costs" AND "transparency" as the basis
of how we would care for the material level of Spirited Work.
<BR> Initially, Vivienne handled this aspect of
our common life. As far as I can tell, Vivienne operated on an implicit
assumption of "enough". That is, she assumed that if she articulated a
sliding scale of costs, and everyone were honest about what they could pay, it
would all come out even. So that's what we did. BUT, Whidbey
Institute didn't know how much it cost to run the place, AND the sliding scale
she established didn't communicate the actual costs. So, the first two
years we were very hit or miss in meeting our costs-and it was never very
clear whether we did do so, or not. For instance, in 2000, we thought we had
given Whidbey Institute enough money to pay for our share of costs, then later
on we learned we did not-so we took up a collection at the end of the year to
make up the difference-then later it seemed that this figure had been wrong as
well and we still owed money. In any case, the whole issue of sharing
the costs of our material welfare became a s!<BR>ource of anxiety and
confusion-indicating this was a grand opportunity for new
learning!!<BR> Quite a bit of energy gathered around
this: positive and negative. Marketplace offerings reflected this focal
point of interest in the community. We began to talk about the Radiant
Bank. We began to focus on abundance-rather than lack, as a result of
noticing the world around us and the lessons of the natural world. We
began to pay increasing attention to what sustainability means: that you had
to address the material level as well as the emotional and spiritual levels to
do spirited work in the world. People were stepping forward in the
Marketplace, offering a variety of topics which indicated their interest in
helping with the material aspect of our life as a
community.<BR> So we Convenors realized that people wanted
to steward the material level of our community in a more thoughtful and
efficient way. We named that function "stewarding", and invited those
who cared about stewarding to do so. Initially the Stewards group
focused on the material level of our welfare. Leadership came forward,
and interested stewards evolved a workable approach to realizing our
commitment to sharing costs and creating abundance as the basis for how we
share the material support of SW. (This was the result of many
conversations between MaryElla Keblusek, Walt Blackford and responsible
Whidbey Institute folks, as well as numerous marketplace offerings and
conversations on Catalyst.)<BR> As a result, we sorted out
the real costs, started a Community Fund to realize our intention to support
all who were attracted to Spirited Work, and we decided on a course of
transparent communication so that the whole community of Spirited Work was
aware of the details of our material life. <BR> Here is what
we did:<BR> We started the year with a debt of $5,000 to
BigMindMedia. This debt resulted from the fact we'd had an agreement for the
year 2001 to pay BigMindMedia $5,000 for its services in maintaining our web
environment BUT we forgot to actually figure that into our costs or to pay
them. So, starting 2002, we had this debt to BigMind, we had a
commitment to create a Community Fund so we could realize our SW Community
Agreement intention to "create the abundance necessary for all who are
attracted to Spirited Work to be able to participate" AND we had to each
pay our share of the total cost of being together at Spirited
Work.<BR> The morning of the first Friday of our first gathering
in January 2002, we put a large copper bowl in the middle of our circle.
In that bowl, we put information about all these costs. AND we made it
clear that as a community, this was our shared material obligation. In
welcoming people and articulating our intention for the year, I spoke about
this bowl, why it was in the middle of our circle, and of the principles which
guide our approach to money and our material needs. I invited people to
contribute to the whole of our material welfare-as they found this had heart
and meaning for them. <BR> We also supplied detailed written
information about how the shared costs were arrived at, what they supported,
etc. MaryElla also spoke, and offered a marketplace session as well as
her personal availablity to anyone who really cared about these issues.
Questions about money and our material needs came up in the closing circle,
and we again realized the importance of continually reiterating how we care
for those needs. We have made all our decision-making and communication
transparent on Catalyst, and we have done the same each seasonal gathering in
writing and in speaking.<BR> At first, a group of Stewards
volunteered to take responsibility for the Community Fund and for raising
money to support that Fund and paying off our debts. Joan McNeary, Sue
MacNab, Michael Dobbie, Jo Shelver were all part of this initial group.
They met several times and came up with a variety of ideas for raising money-a
one of which was to have a big auction in the fall. Membership in that
task group fluctuated during the year, but those who stayed with it evolved a
very practical, inviting method of paying attention to our money
needs.<BR> Over the course of the year, what started as a Silent
Auction to "practice" for the REAL BIG Auction in the fall, became a regular
low-maintenance occasion for recycling our "extra" valuables, offering our
services, and buying them from each other in a Silent Auction which took place
each seasonal weekend. <BR> The Silent Auction raises about
$2,000 each season for the Community Fund. My favorite story about the
Silent Auction is that at the first one, Fritz Hull bought an item for
himself. He forgot to pick it up. At the second Auction, it came
back out again, and Vivienne bought it for Fritz and gave it to him! Without
knowing he'd bought it earlier!<BR> Our efforts to help the whole
materially also bring wonderful personal connections between Spirited Work
seasonal gatherings: eg. Gabriel buys Yoga lessons from Candi, and sees
her and other Spirited Workers in town; Jerilyn, Anne and Dave, Paul,
Joy M. and Sue McNab offer a Pistolet dinner, and a SW consortium buys it!
--and spends the evening together eating up a storm.<BR> So one
take-home lesson from this is experience is do what is FUN, EASY, and brings
JOY when you focus on creating material abundance<BR>
Another initiative happened: Noticing our delight in eating and creating
sustainable approaches to food and abundance, Anne and Dave Stadler,
Steve Silha, Nancy Bond and Jo Shelver invited everyone to help create a
Spirited Food cookbook to raise money for the Community Fund. They were
joined by Leslye Wood (who turned out to be the REAL honcho behind getting the
book done!), Ann Amberg and Katie French. Anne and Dave, Steve Silha,
and Sue McNab choose to front the money for the cookbook, and are being paid
back as the cookbook sells. <BR> There seemed to be a deep
creative stream which supported the book all the way along. Nancy Bond
had to drop out. So we asked for help and Ann Amberg and Katie French
showed up to help on the graphic design. To begin with, Anne Stadler thought
she and Dave could front the entire amount of $$. But in the fall when we were
ready to print, she and Dave had unexpected family expenses which meant they
couldn't afford to front all the costs. So, she called Steve and Sue
McNab to ask for help, and they were able to give it. We were also
delayed getting the book together, and when Anne was called away to deal with
a family emergency, the book needed to be taken to the printers and final
production work was needed. Again, Anne asked for help. Leslye had
an opening in her busy professional schedule, so she stepped in and took over
the entire production process. The book came out in time for the November
gathering of Spirited Work in time for sale as Christmas gifts, and is
st!<BR>arting to earn money. The whole thing feels like SUCH a lesson in
how staying aligned with abundance.<BR>.<BR>What we have
learned:<BR> By being true to our Intentions, we are
creating abundance and sharing the wealth as well as the
costs.<BR> The year 2002, we ended up with a surplus of
money which we are sharing with the Whidbey Institute, giving as a turnkey
grant to Peter Donaldson for SalmonPeople development, buying a gift for the
Sanctuary, and starting the year with a bank account for the Community
Fund. <BR> We also have actualized the Radiant Bank
concept of individuals "lending" money and resources to help deserving
projects happen, which will then be paid back as the projects
earn. AND we have initiated a formal Resource Bank of people who
are offering their services through Spirited Work at the Whidbey Institute,
and donating part of the funds they receive back to SW at the Whidbey
Institute. <BR> We also learned that clear intention applied
in making practical decisions all the way along drives manifestation.
<BR>To take practical action, you follow what has heart and meaning, measure
what you are doing against the intention you declared, and ask for what you
need, when you need it. When glitches or unexpected events happen, you
keep the space open for emergence: notice what is happening, listen for
Guidance, and welcome places of anxiety and static as evidence of the opening
for new learning.<BR> <BR>LET'S CREATE KNOWLEDGE ABOUT THIS ALL
IMPORTANT SUBJECT:<BR>Please ADD your part of the story! <BR>What is
your "aha" experience re. money and creating abundance in SW? <BR>Please
tell your story, and reflect on what it means in general-<BR>AND ADD TO THIS
NARRATIVE!.<BR><BR></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>_______________________________<BR>Peggy
Holman<BR>The Open Circle Company<BR>15347 SE 49th Place<BR>Bellevue, WA
98006<BR>425.746.6274<BR><A
href="http://www.opencirclecompany.com">www.opencirclecompany.com</A></FONT></DIV>
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