<HTML><FONT FACE=arial,helvetica><HTML><FONT COLOR="#000000" FACE="Geneva" FAMILY="SANSSERIF" SIZE="2"><BR>
In a message dated 1/20/05 2:03:11 PM, mccafferty@inwind.it writes:<BR>
<BR>
<BR>
<BLOCKQUOTE CITE STYLE="BORDER-LEFT: #0000ff 2px solid; MARGIN-LEFT: 5px; MARGIN-RIGHT: 0px; PADDING-LEFT: 5px" TYPE="CITE"></FONT><FONT COLOR="#000000" FACE="Geneva" FAMILY="SANSSERIF" SIZE="2">To say it another way. Lots of time and mental effort has been spent on<BR>
wondering "What's the meaning of life?" as if 'life' was a thing capable of<BR>
holding meaning on its own. Well, 'existence' is a fact, whereas 'life' is<BR>
in my opinion a construct or process and so the 'meaning' or 'purpose' or<BR>
'content' is really dependent on what the individual decides.<BR>
<BR>
By itself, life is neutral. We are born, we live, and when it's over, it's<BR>
over. What happens after that I don't know, ... and I don't have to know to<BR>
give my life meaning. I can just decide the meaning of my life.<BR>
</BLOCKQUOTE></FONT><FONT COLOR="#000000" FACE="Geneva" FAMILY="SANSSERIF" SIZE="2"><BR>
<BR>
Lex:<BR>
<BR>
These two paragraphs provoked a bit of 'interior discussion' that I thought I might share with you and any others on the List who might have an interest in somewhat esoteric philosophy. I (and Joelle) were fortunate enough to have had a great teacher from South Africa, a white mining engineer turned transformative-thinker (best I can say it). He taught a philosophy of life as well as many other issues around making our lives (working, family, personal) more whole, more human, more complete. He said that a human being was an organism, not a stimulus-response mechanism as contended by some folks at the time (BF Skinner). He also taught that logic is only applicable to a very small slice of life, that intuition and wholeness applied to the most of life. As part of that, some of us developed, with him, the following, which may help in sorting out the above paragraphs:<BR>
<BR>
What is PURPOSE?<BR>
<BR>
Purpose is Meaning, Made Important, All Depending On You.<BR>
<BR>
What is Meaning? Meaning is </FONT><FONT COLOR="#000000" FACE="Geneva" FAMILY="SANSSERIF" SIZE="2"><I>Difference. </I></FONT><FONT COLOR="#000000" FACE="Geneva" FAMILY="SANSSERIF" SIZE="2">The Difference some person or some physical thing makes in any given situation by being there, being present. Thus, we can intuit the meaning by noticing the difference. Our teacher felt that if he had created anything unique in his life, it was this single understanding, that Meaning is Difference.<BR>
<BR>
Made Important? How do you make something or someone important? By focusing your attention on it or them. Hence, by focusing, (being a fully aware, fully alive, fully functioning human being in the moment) you make the moment important. It contains your most valuable asset, your life's time. And thus, you make the person or persons important </FONT><FONT COLOR="#000000" FACE="Geneva" FAMILY="SANSSERIF" SIZE="2"><I>in your eyes </I></FONT><FONT COLOR="#000000" FACE="Geneva" FAMILY="SANSSERIF" SIZE="2">(the window to the Soul).<BR>
<BR>
All Depending On You? That is the inner feeling that the needed outcome of the action or of the moment is all depending on you and you will be in such a state as to be wholly focused on the requirements of the situation in which you find yourself. Now, sometimes the situation is so overwhelming that you are simply unable to cope, no matter how centered or focused. Natural disasters such as the tsunami's or earthquakes are examples. Man-made disasters such as war's are another. However, by being in that state of personal responsibility for the outcome, you have a very much better probablility of meeting the needs of the situation, and doing so brilliantly, with 'savior faire' (I hope I got the French right).<BR>
<BR>
Therefore, we came to the understanding that a human being longs to be a meaning-maker. One who can say 'I have made a difference'. And, thus, organizations that strive to help that to happen will be uncommonly successful because they will have created the needed "open space" for people to make meaning by making a difference. Which is what I find so powerful about Open Space, it provides the alchemist kettle, the area of bounded instability, in which people are turned on by making meaning in the space provided.<BR>
<BR>
That's what I think tonight. I sure am enjoying this thread. Thank you, Doug, for the evocative question.<BR>
<BR>
Warmly,<BR>
<BR>
Paul Everett</FONT><FONT COLOR="#000000" FACE="Geneva" FAMILY="SANSSERIF" SIZE="2"></FONT></HTML>
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