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<p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 color=red face=Arial><span style='font-size:
12.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:red'>Every now and again, you find footprints in
the Open Space that may well be your own. Raffi mentions that his Russian
friend, Anna ran into OST at a human rights program in Montréal. Unless I am
mistaken, which I often am, that OST was facilitated by me and Jean Pierre
Beaulieu. We had a grand time, but I am not sure the sponsors did – as it
seems the whole thing rather got out of control. Apparently the participants
talked about what they cared about and not what was in the curriculum. Horrors!
Anyhow – we were never invited back, but it is nice to think that maybe the
ripples continue to spread. Raffi – if I am correct, please say Hi to
Anna, and add a big hug too, if she will not think I am being too forward.</span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 color=red face=Arial><span style='font-size:
12.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:red'> </span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 color=red face=Arial><span style='font-size:
12.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:red'>ho</span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 color=red face=Arial><span style='font-size:
12.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:red'> </span></font></p>
<div>
<p class=MsoNormal align=center style='text-align:center'><font size=2
color=red face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Arial;
color:red'>Harrison Owen</span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal align=center style='text-align:center'><font size=2
color=red face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Arial;
color:red'>7808 River Falls Drive</span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal align=center style='text-align:center'><font size=2
color=red face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Arial;
color:red'>Potomac, Maryland 20845</span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal align=center style='text-align:center'><font size=2
color=red face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Arial;
color:red'>Phone 301-365-2093</span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal align=center style='text-align:center'></X-SIGSEP><font
size=3 color=red face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size:12.0pt;
color:red'><!--StartFragment --><X-SIGSEP>Open Space Training <a
href="http://www.openspaceworld.com/" eudora=autourl>www.openspaceworld.com</a>
</span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal align=center style='text-align:center'><font size=3
color=red face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size:12.0pt;color:red'>Open
Space Institute <a href="http://www.openspaceworld.org" eudora=autourl>www.openspaceworld.org</a></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal align=center style='text-align:center'><font size=3
color=red face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size:12.0pt;color:red'>Personal
website <a href="http://mywebpages.comcast.net/hhowen/index.htm"
eudora=autourl>http://mywebpages.comcast.net/hhowen/index.htm</a></span></font><font
color=blue><span style='color:blue'><br>
<a href="mailto:OSLIST@LISTSERV.BOISESTATE.EDU">OSLIST@LISTSERV.BOISESTATE.EDU</a></span></font><font
color=red><span style='color:red'> </span></font></p>
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<p class=MsoNormal style='margin-left:.5in'><font size=2 face=Tahoma><span
style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Tahoma'>-----Original Message-----<br>
<b><span style='font-weight:bold'>From:</span></b> </span></font><font size=2
face=Tahoma><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Tahoma'>OSLIST</span></font><font
size=2 face=Tahoma><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Tahoma'> [mailto:</span></font><font
size=2 face=Tahoma><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Tahoma'>OSLIST</span></font><font
size=2 face=Tahoma><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Tahoma'>@LISTSERV.BOISESTATE.EDU]
<b><span style='font-weight:bold'>On Behalf Of </span></b>Raffi Aftandelian<br>
<b><span style='font-weight:bold'>Sent:</span></b> Sunday, May 23, 2004 1:20 AM<br>
<b><span style='font-weight:bold'>To:</span></b> </span></font><font size=2
face=Tahoma><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Tahoma'>OSLIST</span></font><font
size=2 face=Tahoma><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Tahoma'>@LISTSERV.BOISESTATE.EDU<br>
<b><span style='font-weight:bold'>Subject:</span></b> Happiness
is...*participating* (and taking a break from facilitating) in an OS</span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='margin-left:.5in'><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span
style='font-size:12.0pt'> </span></font></p>
<div>
<p class=MsoNormal style='margin-left:.5in'><font size=2 face="Arial CYR"><span
style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial CYR"'>Greetings OpenSpacers,</span></font></p>
</div>
<div>
<p class=MsoNormal style='margin-left:.5in'><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span
style='font-size:12.0pt'> </span></font></p>
</div>
<div>
<p class=MsoNormal style='margin-left:.5in'><font size=2 face="Times New Roman"><span
style='font-size:10.0pt'>Yesterday, I had the wonderful opportunity of
*participating* as opposed to facilitating an Open Space.</span></font></p>
</div>
<div>
<p class=MsoNormal style='margin-left:.5in'><font size=2 face="Times New Roman"><span
style='font-size:10.0pt'>As I have written before, I am one of the
facilitators/trainers in the community volunteer conflict resolution training
program, Alternatives to Violence Project (<a href="http://www.avpusa.org">www.avpusa.org</a>).
The program started in US prisons at the initiative of inmates in the
mid-1970's and now exists both in the community and prisons in over 30
countries.</span></font></p>
</div>
<div>
<p class=MsoNormal style='margin-left:.5in'><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span
style='font-size:12.0pt'> </span></font></p>
</div>
<div>
<p class=MsoNormal style='margin-left:.5in'><font size=2 face="Times New Roman"><span
style='font-size:10.0pt'>This was a gathering of AVP facilitators (for our
personal development) and for not-yet-facilitators who are active in the
project. There were only about 8 of us.</span></font></p>
</div>
<div>
<p class=MsoNormal style='margin-left:.5in'><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span
style='font-size:12.0pt'> </span></font></p>
</div>
<div>
<p class=MsoNormal style='margin-left:.5in'><font size=2 face="Times New Roman"><span
style='font-size:10.0pt'>A Russian friend of mine, Anna Bernikova (very active
in street orphan issues and an editor of a magazine, Bezprizornik "Street
Orphan"), who'd gotten a short intro to OST at a weeklong human rights
training in Canada (in French!) and had tried a few impromptu OS'es on her own
led it. She realizes that she wants to get more into OS. So we made a deal: I
coach/mentor her in OS and she leads a few OS's, OS's where I need/want to be a
participant.</span></font></p>
</div>
<div>
<p class=MsoNormal style='margin-left:.5in'><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span
style='font-size:12.0pt'> </span></font></p>
</div>
<div>
<p class=MsoNormal style='margin-left:.5in'><font size=2 face="Times New Roman"><span
style='font-size:10.0pt'>During the coaching, while I was demo'ing the walking
the circle, she noticed how she was starting to get sick to the stomach! I
began thinking, "my goodness, do I generate negative, destructive energy
when I open space?" An interesting doubt, but I'm inclined to think that's
the effect of entering chaos. I have heard of people being in analagous states
during the chaos stage of group formation. I told Anna, "when you open
space, it's up to you to do what feels right for you, though I feel like
walking the circle is very important."</span></font></p>
</div>
<div>
<p class=MsoNormal style='margin-left:.5in'><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span
style='font-size:12.0pt'> </span></font></p>
</div>
<div>
<p class=MsoNormal style='margin-left:.5in'><font size=2 face="Times New Roman"><span
style='font-size:10.0pt'>So, when Anna opened space, she just stood there in
the very small circle. No speaking of wisdom, energy, looking around the room,
no breaths. Just the theme, passion, responsibility, the 4 principles, the Law,
and reports. Some of us had participated in an OS before. And of course there
is no way of knowing what would've happened had she done all those other
things. For me personally, it was a very fruitful day. 5 hours worth of
sessions. I personally proposed 5 topics! Too bad we didn't get to one of them.</span></font></p>
</div>
<div>
<p class=MsoNormal style='margin-left:.5in'><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span
style='font-size:12.0pt'> </span></font></p>
</div>
<div>
<p class=MsoNormal style='margin-left:.5in'><font size=2 face="Times New Roman"><span
style='font-size:10.0pt'>And in true OS spirit, after opening space, she took
off to take her 3 kids from one end of Moscow to another and came back some
three hours later. </span></font></p>
</div>
<div>
<p class=MsoNormal style='margin-left:.5in'><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span
style='font-size:12.0pt'> </span></font></p>
</div>
<div>
<p class=MsoNormal style='margin-left:.5in'><font size=2 face="Times New Roman"><span
style='font-size:10.0pt'>Among the topics we discussed:</span></font></p>
</div>
<div>
<p class=MsoNormal style='margin-left:.5in'><font size=2 face="Times New Roman"><span
style='font-size:10.0pt'>1. Improving the AVP-Moscow website</span></font></p>
</div>
<div>
<p class=MsoNormal style='margin-left:.5in'><font size=2 face="Times New Roman"><span
style='font-size:10.0pt'>2. Attracting more participants to our workshops</span></font></p>
</div>
<div>
<p class=MsoNormal style='margin-left:.5in'><font size=2 face="Times New Roman"><span
style='font-size:10.0pt'>3. Process psychology and AVP</span></font></p>
</div>
<div>
<p class=MsoNormal style='margin-left:.5in'><font size=2 face="Times New Roman"><span
style='font-size:10.0pt'>4. Making the Basic level workshop more dynamic</span></font></p>
</div>
<div>
<p class=MsoNormal style='margin-left:.5in'><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span
style='font-size:12.0pt'> </span></font></p>
</div>
<div>
<p class=MsoNormal style='margin-left:.5in'><font size=2 face="Times New Roman"><span
style='font-size:10.0pt'>We didn't get to, sadly:</span></font></p>
</div>
<div>
<p class=MsoNormal style='margin-left:.5in'><font size=2 face="Times New Roman"><span
style='font-size:10.0pt'>1. developing a "moral code" for facilitators</span></font></p>
</div>
<div>
<p class=MsoNormal style='margin-left:.5in'><font size=2 face="Times New Roman"><span
style='font-size:10.0pt'>2. the hidden agendas of facilitators</span></font></p>
</div>
<div>
<p class=MsoNormal style='margin-left:.5in'><font size=2 face="Times New Roman"><span
style='font-size:10.0pt'>3. AVP in Ingushetia</span></font></p>
</div>
<div>
<p class=MsoNormal style='margin-left:.5in'><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span
style='font-size:12.0pt'> </span></font></p>
</div>
<div>
<p class=MsoNormal style='margin-left:.5in'><font size=2 face="Times New Roman"><span
style='font-size:10.0pt'>Yes, for an unfortunate reason, really, the
coordinator (and senior trainer) of the Alternatives to Violence Project in
Ingushetia, a delightful Chechen friend named Mir was in town. </span></font></p>
</div>
<div>
<p class=MsoNormal style='margin-left:.5in'><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span
style='font-size:12.0pt'> </span></font></p>
</div>
<div>
<p class=MsoNormal style='margin-left:.5in'><font size=2 face="Times New Roman"><span
style='font-size:10.0pt'>As some may have seen in the news in the past week or
so, there was a terrorist act during the May 9 World War II V-day celebrations
in Grozny, and the president of Chechnya, Ahmad Kadyrov was assassinated.
5 others died, including one of Mir's closest friends, Adlan Hassanov, a friend
from his student days and a Reuters journalist. Reuters organized a special
event in memory of Adlan and invited different pepole close to Adlan, including
Mir. They wined and dined all those who came, put them up in the 5-star
Radisson-Slavyanskaya hotel, treated to VIP european buffets (all you can eat
everything.) Some of the Chechens during these meals were driven to tears
because this was such special treatment on such a sad occasion and in such
sharp contrast to how they usually live. They had come out of a totally
different context. They were taken to see Swan Lake at Moscow Bolshoi Theater.
One Chechen remarked that even in death Adlan was taking care of them. And yet,
when I heard all of this I was very sad, it spoke so much to the post-modernist
absurdity of our existence. Mir doing peacework at home, organizing workshops,
living on a tiny salary (even so, there are sometimes wage arrears; and this is
while working with an international humanitarian organization!). </span></font></p>
</div>
<div>
<p class=MsoNormal style='margin-left:.5in'><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span
style='font-size:12.0pt'> </span></font></p>
</div>
<div>
<p class=MsoNormal style='margin-left:.5in'><font size=2 face="Times New Roman"><span
style='font-size:10.0pt'>I know how Mir lives, until recently he lived in a
tent camp, that is until the Russian authorities tore those refugee camps down
(another violation of international law). And he was able to secure a room in a
multi-family plywood house. Basically it's a wood house, his family of 4
has 6 square meters...The tent by comparison was a palace, at least there was
space (even if it was sweltering in the summer and freezing in the winter). And
it occured to me this morning that with the money reuters had spent on putting
him up and wining and dining, he probably would be able to buy his family a
small home in a Russian village. Living absurd.</span></font></p>
</div>
<div>
<p class=MsoNormal style='margin-left:.5in'><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span
style='font-size:12.0pt'> </span></font></p>
</div>
<div>
<p class=MsoNormal style='margin-left:.5in'><font size=2 face="Times New Roman"><span
style='font-size:10.0pt'>And it was difficult listening to him, because I heard
essentially a numbness, a pain so deep as a consequence of this death, that he
sees only a point in living today. Other than that, he has no desire for
anything, not for leaving Ingushetia (which he doesn't care for); nor for going
abroad (more loneliness); nor for moving to Moscow (constant harrassment by
authorities; being targeted/hated by others; shaken down for "chump
change" by the police here). There was nothing I could say but just
listen...and cry.</span></font></p>
</div>
<div>
<p class=MsoNormal style='margin-left:.5in'><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span
style='font-size:12.0pt'> </span></font></p>
</div>
<div>
<p class=MsoNormal style='margin-left:.5in'><font size=2 face="Times New Roman"><span
style='font-size:10.0pt'>And yet, I was very happy to see him. It's the people
in Chechnya who are trying to do *something* that give me hope. Even if there
aren't a lot of them. I look forward to going to Ingushetia in the next month
of so to work with him a little.</span></font></p>
</div>
<div>
<p class=MsoNormal style='margin-left:.5in'><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span
style='font-size:12.0pt'> </span></font></p>
</div>
<div>
<p class=MsoNormal style='margin-left:.5in'><font size=2 face="Times New Roman"><span
style='font-size:10.0pt'>I had hoped during the OS to interview him (as I had
done previously) about his work, and to publish it somewhere. But, whatever
happens, happens. I had the common sense...(eventually!) to stop for a moment
and really sit down and listen instead of being the whole time in idea
generation mode. </span></font></p>
</div>
<div>
<p class=MsoNormal style='margin-left:.5in'><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span
style='font-size:12.0pt'> </span></font></p>
</div>
<div>
<p class=MsoNormal style='margin-left:.5in'><font size=2 face="Times New Roman"><span
style='font-size:10.0pt'>I asked myself during the closing, did breakthrough
learning happen? Yes, it did.</span></font></p>
</div>
<div>
<p class=MsoNormal style='margin-left:.5in'><font size=2 face="Times New Roman"><span
style='font-size:10.0pt'>I guess we could call this just another day in OS!</span></font></p>
</div>
<div>
<p class=MsoNormal style='margin-left:.5in'><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span
style='font-size:12.0pt'> </span></font></p>
</div>
<div>
<p class=MsoNormal style='margin-left:.5in'><font size=2 face="Times New Roman"><span
style='font-size:10.0pt'>To all out there a friendly salute and a warm
handshake,</span></font></p>
</div>
<div>
<p class=MsoNormal style='margin-left:.5in'><font size=2 face="Times New Roman"><span
style='font-size:10.0pt'>Raffi Aftandelian</span></font></p>
</div>
<div>
<p class=MsoNormal style='margin-left:.5in'><font size=2 face="Times New Roman"><span
style='font-size:10.0pt'>Moscow</span></font></p>
</div>
<div>
<p class=MsoNormal style='margin-left:.5in'><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span
style='font-size:12.0pt'> </span></font></p>
</div>
<div>
<p class=MsoNormal style='margin-left:.5in'><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span
style='font-size:12.0pt'> </span></font></p>
</div>
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